“Copy that. Watching fuel gauge.” Cole’s voice feels distant from our exchange earlier.
What? No ‘good luck’? No ‘don’t get yourselves killed’? Stay safe? I stick my tongue out at the comm as if his face were right in front of me.
I place my helmet on and test my comm with Emery.
“Can you hear me?” I ball my hand into a fist and extend my thumb.
Emery shakes his head vigorously. “There’s no need to be vulgar. And I’m supposed to be the kid here?”
Huh? “This means yes on Zeta. How do you sign yes on Mythos?”
He understanding extends his middle finger at me—the Zetian sign for fuck you. I laugh and extend my middle finger. He nods approvingly.
“Are you two going to get out there or not?” Cole asks on the comm.
I take a deep breath, forcing my unusual giddiness under control. “Just blowing off some steam. We’re going.”
Being outside a ship in deep space is amazing, but the fact that we can’t breathe in space coupled with weightlessness can create panic for a newbie. They call it astrophobia, and the fear is common. Personally, I’ve never had an issue—just like swimming underwater except there’s no bottom.
“Okay, Emery. Hold on to the ladder. Once I seal the door, you will be weightless.”
“Copy, Raven.”
I press the lock on the door and hear a hiss as the oxygen leaves the small chamber. We float as I climb the ladder leading to the outside hatch. I release the hatch and link my tether to the outside hook by the door. Next, I thread the line through Emery’s carabiner at the waist of his suit and then back to the ship.
“Hang on to the line and follow my lead. We are going to follow the surface of the ship to the underside,” I say to Emery. “You good?”
Emery shows me his middle finger again, making me smile.
“Remember to breath normally,” I say.
We make our way around the ship to the underside without a problem. I crouch down next to the outlet for the fuel cell chamber, thinking we have it made.
“Um, Raven, we’ve got a problem,” Cole says, his voice finally showing the concern they deserve. “There’s a cluster of asteroids headed our way.”
As soon as the words leave his mouth, I see them. It’s a small group, and they’re headed straight for us. These types of clusters can appear without warning. What bad luck. Either Cole’s going to have to do some maneuvering, or we’re going to take some hits. Maybe a little of both. I glance around for anyplace to brace ourselves. Not the best place to be when a ship is pelted with giant rocks.
Emery points at the asteroids, his eyes wide like saucers. His breathing whips up over the comm.
“Don’t freak out,” I say, grabbing his arm. “Look at me. I won’t let anything happen to you.”
“What do we do?” Emery asks.
“Guys, I’m going to need you to get back inside like now,” Cole said.
Too late.
The ship dips violently, knocking Emery’s grip off his line. An asteroid must have hit the top of the ship.
“Raven!” he yells, floating away from me at a rapid pace. My heart jumps to my throat.
“I got you!” Starfire! I didn’t show him his jet propulsion system controls because I didn’t think we’d need it. I hold a handle by the fuel chamber and grasp the line to reel him back in. “Stay calm. I got you.”
I grab his hand and pull him back next to me and take a much needed breath. I could have lost him.
His body trembles, and his eyes are glassy. “I…can’t…breathe.”
“Yes you can. Look at me. In through your nose and out through your mouth. You can do it. One breath at a time.” I simulate what I want him to do with my own breathing.
“Guys—” Cole says.
“Not now, Cole,” I reply.
Emery takes a deep breath then another.
“That’s it. You got it.”
I look behind him. Another asteroid is headed straight for us. I grab his carabiner with one hand and the handle with my other and flatten our bodies against the ship. I squeeze my eyes shut and brace for impact. “Cole!”
The ship veers up under Cole’s control, and my grip holds. I open my eyes to see what direction the next impact might come from. Oh no. There’s too many.
“Emery, can you use the sphere with your glove on to take out the asteroids?”
He nods and reaches into the bag attached to the outside of his suit, floating weightlessly in front of him. The glowing sphere, completely unaffected by the lack of gravity, stays bound to Emery’s hand like a moon to a planet. His eyes lose focus as if mentally communicating with the sphere. Then it jettisons off, pelting asteroid after asteroid in an explosion of bright light, turning the rocks to dust. It’s like an old-school pinball machine back on Earth. Finally, after the last asteroid in its path shatters, the sphere floats back to Emery’s outstretched hand.
“Whoa,” Cole says. “Bad ass, kid.”
I smile proudly. That he is.
“Good. Now, let’s get this done so we can get back inside.” I open the plug to the fuel cell and point to it.
Emery nods and places the sphere over the opening, and it descends into the fuel chamber.
I look from Emery to the plug.
“Wait,” he says.
I press my ship comm. “Cole, any change in fuel?”
“Not yet,” he responds.
How long will this take? I mean I don’t mind being in space, but asteroid clusters can chain together. I scan our surroundings, growing more uncomfortable. Another minute passes, but it feels like an eternity.
Finally, a bright light pulses from somewhere deep in the fuel cell, illuminating the plug passage. It’s so bright I have to put up my sun shield and do the same for Emery.
“Fuel cell increased,” Cole says over the comm. “It’s going to be close, but I think we’ll have enough power to get to the moon. Head back inside.”
I tap Emery on the shoulder and indicate that he should retrieve the sphere. He reaches out his hand, and the sphere floats back up through the passage and firmly presses back into his open hand.
“Okay, let’s get back inside,” I say.
As I place the cap back over the plug, Cole is back on the comm. “I don’t understand it, something happened. The power is gone again. What happened out there?”
Oh no. Emery points down at the sphere and then back at the plug. I nod. We’ll have to leave the sphere in the fuel cell. I open the plug again, and Emery sends the sphere back in.
As soon as the chamber lights up again, I call Cole. “We good again?”
“Check, we are powered.”
I tug on the tether and pull Emery with me back to the hatch. Once back inside the ship, I seal the hatch and open the door, allowing oxygen back into the chamber. I take off my helmet and then Emery’s.
“What will happen to the sphere?” I ask.
Emery shrugs, concern etched on his innocent face. “I guess we’ll find out.”
“Yeah, I guess we will.” As an afterthought, I ask, “We aren’t in any danger, are we?”
“I shouldn’t think so. I’m on the ship, and the sphere protects me. When we land on the moon, I’ll retrieve it.”
I exhale loudly, coming down from the rush. It washes over me in waves. I’m an adrenaline junkie, always have been. “That was intense out there.” I muss his dyed-brown hair. “What did you think of your first spacewalk?”
Emery shakes his head. “I don’t think it’s for me.”
Probably not, kid. I chuckle and give him the Mythosian ‘thumbs up’ in return.
13
Verta Moon
Verta Moon, home to the Mahthe. I stare out the window of the cockpit as the moon comes into view. The surface is gray, dusty, and desolate, and I can’t imagine how life could survive without a water supply. But somehow life always finds a way, and that’s exactly what the Mahthe have done. The only sign of habitation is a fu
eling station encased in an oxygen dome rising off the surface like a bubble. It starts out as a tiny dot, but with each passing second, it gains girth as our ship closes in on its landing platform.
“Okay, so what’s the game plan?” Cole asks.
“As soon as we land, we retrieve the sphere. Hopefully, we won’t have to use it,” I say. “SANDY, prepare for landing.” I tap the comm. “Emery, are you ready? We have to get the sphere back as soon as we touch down.”
“I’m ready,” he replies.
“Okay, let’s land this baby.” I grasp the controls.
I hail the charging station, and we are granted access into the air-locked oxygen dome. Once inside, I sigh, my hands gripping the controls tightly. There are no other ships recharging. Not even one. All eyes will be on our ship. I put her down in a spot furthest away from the pay station. If we are going to do this, we’ll need all the time we can get to retrieve the sphere. I power her down.
“Emery, meet us at the door.” I check my weapons, making sure they are all ready to go in case we need them. Cole does the same. When I reach Emery, he’s saying some kind of prayer. Good. “I’m not exactly what you would call a believer, but right now, we need all the help we can get.”
I open the outer door as the ramp extends to the ground. Dust swirls all around the barren surface as cool air hits my face, making me thankful for my temperature-regulating battle suit. The dusty air sticks at the back of my throat, causing me to cough. We probably should have equipped some breathing gear. No time to think about that now. We need to get the sphere before we are approached by any Mahthe. I hit solid ground, my boots kicking up dust.
We’ve made a huge mistake. Words enter my mind as if my own, but they are not.
Turn off your weapons, a soft, feminine voice echoes in my mind.
The hair on the back of my neck stands on end. We don’t stand a chance. I turn my pistol back to safety mode. Cole follows suit.
“They’re in my head already,” Cole says, looking around for the source of the voice.
“Mine too. Emery?”
“Yes, I feel them,” he says.
A hovercraft like the ones we use on Zeta approaches our ship.
“Emery, get behind me,” I say, instinctually.
A Mahthe steps from the vehicle, her boots clicking on the hard surface of the landing pad. She’s thin and muscular with taut, blue skin. She stands a head or two taller than me, and her hands have five long, taloned digits and a matching opposable thumb. Her hairless cranium is elongated, doubtlessly necessary given their extra-large brains and legendary mind control. Her huge dark eyes remind me of the tar pools on Garda and are surrounded by dark freckles that match the color of her lips. She’s wearing a long sari-like garb fashioned in blue to match her skin with silver metallic threading.
The lifestyle of the Mahthe is fascinating. They have the capability to reproduce asexually, having no need for males if they choose. As such, males have fallen into the lower echelons of their social hierarchy and do not have the same capability for mind control as their female counterparts. Occasionally, Mahthe conceive naturally, but it’s by choice, not a necessity. The only rung lower than male Mahthe are visitors they deem as disrespectful or unable to pay for a recharge. Those they claim as pets.
“I’m Leoni. What is your purpose here?” Her voice is hypnotic, like three voices singing in verse.
The one thing Mahthe abhor above all else is deceit. They can sniff out a lie a lightyear away. I need to be as honest as possible, which for me, will be no easy feat. “I’m Raven Nevar. We need to recharge.
“What have you to pay for the recharging, Raven Nevar?”
“We have 10,000 credits,” Cole chimes in.
Stupid, Cole! I knew he wasn’t exactly an excellent student in school, but I didn’t think I needed to give him a refresher course on interspecies etiquette. For one, it’s a lie, and two, the Mahthe don’t take credits.
Lying is the first sign of an inferior race. We have uses for inferior races. Perhaps you should stay for a while, Leoni says in our heads. Then aloud, as if noticing Emery for the first time, asks, Who are you?
“I’m Emery D’Grath from Mythos,” he says, grasping my hand.
“A Mythosian on Verta Moon? But your eyes and hair are not silver,” Leoni asks, her already large eyes widening.
Emery looks up at me for guidance, and I nod. Emery removes a lens from his left eye, revealing a silvery iris.
“Astonishing, truly astonishing. Why would you hide your true self?” Leoni asks.
“So that we don’t get asked too many questions,” I reply, telling the truth, hoping it doesn’t sound too harsh.
Leoni looks back at me and tilts her large head. “What do you have for payment for a recharge?”
I expected us to have the sphere before this conversation happened. That was our best bargaining chip. Now, without it, we’ll have to improvise.
“Would you take this as payment?” I ask, reaching inside my suit to an inner pocket. I pull out the only remaining item I have, to remember my mother—a titanium linked necklace with a rare pearl from Earth. Since most of the water was harvested from Earth, pearls are non-existent.
Cole grabs my arm. “No, Raven. That was your mother’s.”
Before I can move his hand, Leoni compels him to do so, and he releases me almost as quickly as he touched me.
“We do not touch others in such a matter. If you touch her once more, you will be cleaning our sewer drainage system for the rest of your life. Males are worth little more than pets on this moon and humans even less. You are both,” Leoni says to Cole, her distaste for him palpable.
Then to me, she thinks, Bring me the necklace.
I walk to her, my breath catching. Her skin isn’t blue—it’s iridescent. Her oval eyes are like depthless black holes, giving away nothing. Such a mysterious species. I wonder if my dad ever met a Mahthe. Would he be able to get a read on her? I hand her the necklace, hoping my hand grazes hers, but it doesn’t. Is she warm or cold? Does she feel soft or hard?
Stop staring, Raven. I don’t even want to think about what she would have me doing if I step out of line…
Leoni looks at the necklace admiringly. She looks back into my eyes as I try to make eye contact, tilting her head to the side slightly, as if sizing me up. “You want to touch me, don’t you?”
“Yes, I mean, your skin...”
“I will permit it.” She extends her hand.
I stare down at her six digits with long hard nails. I can’t imagine what a punch from that fist could do to a human body. But I guess they have no need for violence, since they can control minds. I grasp her hand in mine. The nails are hard as diamonds, but her skin is warm and supple, like the pelt of a sunning water lion on Cadmar.
I drop her hand and stare at the ground out of respect for her indulging me. “Thank you.”
“This necklace will suffice as payment. I have no pearls. My younger sister has one and reminds me of it when she has the chance. I think this one is even more beautiful than hers. You may enter my hovercraft and wait in the communal station. Perhaps you require some food and drink. We do not have many items, but vendors stop by from time to time.”
I open my mouth to oppose her suggestion and stay with the ship, but her thoughts interrupt me, Get into the hovercraft.
I do as I’m told and enter the craft with Emery and Cole. Another much larger hover vehicle approaches our ship to begin the charging. I glance at Emery, my eyes asking if the sphere will be safe and undetected through the charging. He nods curtly. Good, because that’s the last thing we need. Leoni boards the craft and drives us to the communal station. What awaits us inside is anyone’s guess. But one thing is for certain—we don’t have the sphere or any means to protect ourselves. Just once, since I’ve met Emery, I’d like to have one of my plans work.
Just once.
Leoni drops us off at the door of the communal station. “I will return for you when
your ship is recharged. Go inside and wait.”
We thank her and enter the building. There’s easy listening music playing, the same kind that plays in the bathrooms of restaurants on Zeta. I’ve spent my fair share of time in those bathrooms—they’re the best places to pick pockets. Pants down and all that. But the one thing that always gets old is the repetitive sing-songish instrumental music. Grating on the ears, just like now.
The station is a large cafeteria with a counter to order food and drink. What’s eerie is the lack of sound beyond the music. The joint is full of Mahthe seated at tables, sipping from tiny cups and eating from metal cans, and yet, there are no conversations. They simply glance at one another between sips and bites. In the corner of the room is a Mahthe perched on a high stool observing the scene. Probably the manager.
I’m also struck by how many humans are here. They are wearing cream-colored jumpsuits that blend in with the sterile-looking walls, floor, and tables. It reminds me of prison attire on Zeta. They move quietly about cleaning tables, floors, and windows. There are also a few humans behind the counter. A sign with symbols I don’t recognize hangs above their heads.
As we move forward, some of the Mahthe turn to glance at us. They no doubt were made aware of our presence as soon as we entered their atmosphere. I cast my eyes to the floor and make for the closest empty table. Emery follows, but Cole goes to the counter.
What’s he doing? Having a snack? Of all the times to get the munchies…
Have something to eat, I hear in my head. I get up, grasp Emery’s hand, and join Cole at the counter.
The human standing across from us has a smile plastered on his face, perfect white teeth gleaming. The nametag on his cream-colored jumpsuit says Jude and underneath his name, it says Property of Idel.
“Welcome to Verta Moon station. We have a variety of drinks and delicious snacks. The special today is snarp. What can I get you?” Jude asks, his plastered-on smile never leaving his face.
I glance up at the sign. I can’t understand what any of the symbols mean.
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