Flying training was done for the day. Kierah left the speeder hangar, energized and mostly happy. Like combat class, and unlike ballroom dancing or tea etiquette, she could imagine finding a practical use for the knowledge back in her normal … Continue reading Chapter 18: “I don’t think you should go back”
“You need this,” Ari said, in the kind of tone that wouldn’t take no for an answer. And she handed Kierah a mug. Kierah stared at the dark liquid inside it, and wrinkled her nose. “What is it, again?” “If … Continue reading Chapter 17: Coffee — and a confrontation about the past
[Eight years ago] Ethan heard the boy’s sobbing from down the tunnel. Swinging the pick back and digging it into the rock wall, he tried to drown it out. He didn’t know who it was or why he was crying, … Continue reading Chapter 16: Eight years ago
What did it matter what she looked like? What did it matter that she’d brought them food and saved their lives? She was an intruder and she couldn’t be trusted, end of story.
He wasn’t the trusting type — that had been beaten out of him years ago. He knew better. Continue reading Chapter 15: Not the trusting type, and yet …
They watched the shadowy figure sneak across the screen, the nightvision view illuminating the nearby area with an artificial green glow. But it wasn’t long before the phantom disappeared off one side of the monitor, only to reappear on another … Continue reading Chapter 11: My Ender, your convict
The boys had started getting sick three days ago. First it was just one, then three, then a half dozen. And before he knew it, over half of his makeshift family was bed-ridden, and the other half forbidden from approaching them. Even with the quarantine, though, others fell ill. He and a few of the older boys tried to nurse the sick as best they could, but with no resources, it was a hopeless task. Continue reading Chapter 10: Cure
Ethan stared at her. Her. It was a girl. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen one of those. He blinked, not entirely sure his eyes weren’t lying. But they weren’t. Her hair, released from her helmet, tumbled in … Continue reading Chapter 9: The sickness
