Blocking her out, I focused my gaze forward. I was hyper-aware of Malik, but didn’t turn to see if he was looking at me or just staring at the floor in total boredom. Probably the latter. Why didn’t I dare talk to him?
Joe leaned into my shoulder and snuggled his rabbit, swinging his leg back and forth, back and forth while our craft zipped from the tunnel and into the smudge of a normal Earth day. Tilting sideways, we took a corner at a fast clip and leveled out as we approached the spaceport.
A cluster of cinderblock buildings appeared from the smog, and we halted in front of a tall gate with police in riot gear spanning the entrance with high-powered laser rifles clutched in their gloved hands.
Crowds had gathered on either side of the path, and they pressed against the fence. Many wore custom-made ReGreen durasuits, their chests emblazoned the ReGreen symbol.
Anger ripped through me. Damn them and their slogans.
Don’t abandon Earth. Wait for the RECOVERY.
ReGreen opposed the Relocation Project, and it was common knowledge they’d do anything to keep us from settling on off-Earth colonies. In the past year, they’d been accused of killing a project engineer and of masterminding a starship explosion. The organization had denied their involvement, saying they only sanctioned peaceful protest. Like anyone believed that? Call it whatever you wanted, but a riot was a riot. My Mom had died during one of their peaceful demonstrations.
The gate opened, and our tram surged through, leaving ReGreen behind to choke on our fumes. Hovercars zipped beside us on the spaceport access road. Children pressed their masked faces against the windows. Poor things. Even if they made the cut, the government couldn’t locate enough suitable planets for a full evacuation. Other than those sent ahead to get things ready, like my dad, an age between six and thirty was the initial requirement for the off-world lottery. Computers divided everyone into colonies after that.
Our craft stopped in front of the terminal, and the doors slid open. I sucked in a breath of humanity and coughed. We could only tolerate it a few minutes before we risked lung rot.
When I shuffled behind Joe, toward the opening, Malik came up beside me. “Hey.” I looked up, and his brown eyes darkened. For some reason, I couldn’t look away. He kept his black hair cut tight in a military-style, and I wanted to touch it, run my fingers along the spiky top, but revealing my interest would be foolish. It was doubtful he felt the same way. He tilted his head toward the spaceport entrance. “I’ve got a debriefing to go to before I board, but I’ll look you up on Eris?” He cleared his throat. “If that’s okay.”
What if there was no girlfriend? Since moving into the Bunker, I’d found it easier to steer clear of guys. But, for whatever reason, I couldn’t resist the urge to steer closer to Malik.
“Sure,” I breathed, a thrill blooming inside me. “I’d like that.”
He chipped a nod and moved toward the doors.
Face overheating, I ran to catch up with Joe and my friends.
As we stepped across the paved walk, reporters rushed us, their cams whirring and lights flashing. They shouted questions.
Have you thought about what life will be like on Eris? Better than here.
Are you scared about traveling in stasis? Did shaky knees count?
What words would you like to leave for Earth? Take care of those you love.
My fake smile slipped once we left them behind.
We passed through security and then took the skywalk to the interstellar terminal. Overhead, the PA system spit its message out on repeat, You’re about to descend into cryogenic suspension. Every safeguard has been put into place to ensure your wellbeing as you rest in chilled splendor in a stasis unit built just for you. Tens of thousands have proven the safety of Drexia Corporation’s patented Frost-Touch system.
My guts twisted. There had been failed experiments when the Project began. Had the technicians fixed the issues? This might not work.
The smooth voice overhead broke through my spiraling panic. Your hair, nails, and skin won’t grow. No matter how far you travel, you won’t age a nanosecond.
Like a hunk of meat in the freezer.
You’ll emerge as genetically pristine as the moment you entered suspension.
The words sank in, lifting my nerves to a screech.
Ready to populate a brave new world.
Ugh. The government’s prime directive. We’d been encouraged to pair up after we turned eighteen. Something about making sure we carried on the species, etc. No thanks. I had a month left before I turned eighteen. Plenty of time to think about a pairing. If possible, I’d put it off forever.
At Terminal B, a woman in a military uniform directed a blue ray from her wrist com at my eye, verifying my right to be there. She fused an ID tag to my durasuit.
Lesha Drabyak. Eris.
We located friends, Will, and his younger sister, Mandy, and we dropped into hard plastic chairs to wait our turn to board.
Creases appeared around Will’s eyes when he smiled my way. He shoved a clump of dark brown hair off his forehead.
“How’s it going?” High color filled his face, highlighting his cheekbones. “I’m nervous.” His gaze flicked from Mandy to us. “How ‘bout you guys?”
Joe’s eyes locked on the vending machines. “I’m hungry.”
Since I had no credits left—we’d used them to splurge on a dinner with real meat last night—I pulled a water pouch and MRB from my bag and handed them to my brother. Meal Replacement Bars were the staple of everyone’s diet, because we couldn’t grow enough real stuff on Earth. They’d packed six hundred calories into each tiny bar.
While Joe ate and hung out with Mandy, I hovered on the edge of my seat and picked at my nails. Voices echoed in the high-ceiling room. People huddled against windows, peering out into the smog, while little kids shrieked up and down the aisles. In no time we’d all be suspended in cryo.
Joe pulled out his electronic gaming unit. The tinny intro to his favorite pastime, second only to televid cartoons, erupted from the device.
I’d finally relaxed enough to lean back in my chair when they called the first names.
“Amanda Huang,” the PA system announced. “William Huang.”
Will stood and stretched his lanky frame. “You ready?” he asked Mandy.
She hugged Joe and ran over to hug me, too.
I stroked her long, dark hair. “See you on Eris?” Her grin showed a gap where her two front teeth were missing.
“I will, I will!” She grinned while Will tugged her toward the boarding gate.
Turning toward Tiff, I cringed. “It’s going to be our turn soon.”
“Yup. It’s gonna…” She gnawed on her thumbnail as her eyes focused beyond my shoulder.
Overhead, the PA system called the next person to board, “Riley Sanders.”
Chapter Four
I bolted upright and twisted around to gape over my shoulder.
“Vick Sanders!” the PA system said.
Riley strode across the terminal like a rock star in our midst. Teenage girls giggled and pointed. Teenage boys did, too. His younger brother, Vick, trailed behind him, focused on his digital device. About Joe’s age, they’d played together a couple of times.
What were they doing here? Riley was going to Stellar 3, and their ship wasn’t leaving for a week. After what happened earlier, I’d told myself it would be okay. I’d never see him again.
He strolled to the desk where guards verified his and Vick’s identity. A man clapped Riley on the shoulder and laughed.
Riley shifted around, and his razor-blue eyes stabbed into mine.
Anxiety expanded in my belly until my insides threatened to burst through.
As if he could sort through my thoughts and unearth my hidden fears, he smirked. His blond hair fell across his face as he looked down and tapped on his wrist com.
Mine chimed. My chest deflated. With dread filling me, I scanned the message. Can’t wait to reconnect on Eris, babe.<
br />
The surrounding voices faded to nothing. Shock splintered my heart. My vision tunneled on Riley, who winked and then strode down the corridor leading to our spacecraft.
Tiff grunted. “You get a load of him?” A high-pitched giggle erupted from her chest. “I guess the higher-ups did some seat-swapping, huh? Otherwise, why would he be here?”
My fists blanched paler than the dead fish floating in the river near the Bunker. How could I go to the same planet as him? Only three hundred people lived in the colony. He’d find me. A respected Team Leader, no one would believe me if I complained about him acting like a jerk.
The moment we landed, I’d tell Dad. He’d do something about Riley.
“Joe Drabyak.” The name shouted out by the PA system. “Lesha Drabyak.”
But what if Dad couldn’t do anything about it? He’d left five years ago. Earth was able to send messages, so he must know Mom had died. We’d heard back from them a few times, but not lately. Something about meteor showers getting in the way with the signals? I couldn’t remember exactly the reason they’d given us. It didn’t matter. I’d see him soon, and we could talk then. Maybe he’d see this as a chance to continue the genetic program he’d been so proud of. Maybe he’d push me toward Riley. No way. I couldn’t do it. I was going to—
“Lesha,” Tiff shouted. She wrapped her arms around me. “Hey. You’re freakin’ out there. Chill. It’s going to be okay.”
How could it be okay? Eyes unfocused, I fought for control.
They called our names again, and I shifted back from Tiff and stood.
“Don’t worry about the cryo,” Tiff said, as if that was my only concern. “I read up on it and they’re using the latest techniques. In fact, I think we’re—”
“Get your stuff together, kiddo,” I told Joe, bursting through her explanation. Was there time to tell her about Riley?
“Would the Drabyak family please come to the check-in desk? Now.”
So much for that idea. I’d fill her in once we reached Eris. If Dad couldn’t help. Tiff would find a way.
As Joe stared up at me, his eyes swimming with worry, I hauled in a deep breath and pushed it out. I needed to get myself together.
Act normal. No need to worry about Riley until we reached Eris.
Tiff sprang to her feet and hugged me again. “See? You’re not the only one freakin’ out. I’m a total wreck. This stuff is scary!”
“Yup,” I said, making my lips curl up in a smile.
She leaned back but held onto my forearms. “See you on the other side?” Her voice pinched. “We’ll be old ladies then.” She blinked. “Ha, ha, ha. I’ll be fifty. That’s ancient.” Nice of her to try to lighten my mood.
When we landed, I’d be fifty, as well. Or seventeen, if the no-aging propaganda still spewing from the speakers could be believed. “Old ladies, that’s us.”
“Get going, you ancient thing.” She tapped my butt. “Don’t keep admin waiting.”
I waved, and Joe and I strode up to the desk to be checked through.
Security directed us into the tunnel where light poked through the grated floor. The frayed nylatec overhead fluttered and flapped. Turning a corner, we stepped over the lip of the hatch and entered a small chamber. Flight crew in matching Spaceline durasuits urged us toward the belly of the ship where the stasis units waited.
“Welcome,” they said. “So happy you’re traveling with us.”
Standing in line behind a man with a neon green ponytail, I focused on my breathing, but I couldn’t stop my hands from shaking. Panic threatened to burst through my skin.
A blonde woman wearing a tag that read Captain Jenny Blackmine, Eris, stood at attention near the main stasis chamber. She’d pilot our ship to the Earth’s outer atmosphere before climbing into her own stasis unit. The autopilot would kick in from there, guiding us to our new home like a futuristic Noah’s Ark. She beamed and stroked Joe’s hair. “Nice to see you. I hope you enjoy your flight.”
I gave her a wan smile.
Joe’s eyes bugged like he was a feral creature about to bolt. His grip took my fingers to bone crunch. Squeezing back, I tried to lend him some strength, but I had none left to spare. Mine had drained from me, taking my calm along with it.
We stopped by a man who flashed us a tight smile. He glanced at my name tag and number. “Miss, your stasis unit’s in the immediate right.” He nodded to Joe. “And yours is in the back left, young man. Unit 62.” He tapped his touchscreen and leaned over to speak to the girl behind us.
Quaking inside, I dragged my feet forward, one step at a time.
Joe hung back. “I’m scared.”
Tugging him out of line, I stooped to his level and held his shoulders. His eyes swam with tears.
“Everything will be okay,” I said. “Remember from class? This is just a long nap. When you wake up, we’ll be on Eris, extra sleepy from stasis lag.”
He focused on my face. “I remember.”
“The colonists will give us medicine to make the sleepiness go away.” I rubbed his arms. “And best of all, we’ll be with Dad.”
His lower lip trembled. “I miss Daddy.”
I did too. So much. Especially since Mom died.
“We’re going to have an awesome life on Eris,” I said. “Instead of MRBs, we’ll get to eat real fruit that grows on trees. Can you picture that? I can’t but I’m excited to see what it looks like. And there will be yummy, fresh vegetables, too.”
I doubted he knew what fruit or vegetables were. We’d lived on MRBs for years. Even when Mom was alive, real stuff was a treat like last night, when I’d used up the last of our credits to buy a few bites of stringy beef.
But reassuring Joe was all that mattered.
“Another thing?” I said. “You’ll be able to run outside without a mask on your face.” What would it be like to breathe air that didn’t smell like burning waste or plastic?
Pulling my brother close, I shut my eyes and savored his arms tightening around my neck. A tear slid down my face, and I wiped it away before I gave in and let the floodgates open. I needed to remain strong for my brother, if not for myself. “It’ll be okay. I promise.”
Joe tightened his spine and stepped backward. “I’m okay now.”
With a wavering smile, I stood and took his hand.
Inside the main stasis chamber, white composite material covered the walls. A diamond-plated floor shone under the fluoros, and tight rows of bullet-shaped stasis units sat perpendicular to the front of the ship. Green lights flickered from the bank of computers at the end of the room. It was simple, really. Lay in our unit. Let it do what it needed. Wake up. Then exit the ship through the hatch to the right of the computers.
Dad would be waiting. A new life would be waiting.
An older woman strode forward and thrust her hand toward Joe. “Come with me, young man.”
My brother clung to me, knuckling onto my pants.
“It’s time, kiddo.” I urged him forward. “I’ll go with you.”
“Absolutely not.” The woman glanced at my tag before consulting her touchscreen. “Lesha. Unit 8.” A strand of salt-and-pepper hair slid from her neat bun, and she shoved it back with twitchy fingers. “That’s against the rules. Go to your unit for induction, please.” She pried Joe’s hand from mine. “I’ll take him from here.”
He sputtered and darted a crazed look at me as she dragged him away.
I don’t think so. Running after them, I grabbed his other hand, and steel ripped through my voice. “I’m going with him.”
Her lips tightened. “You can’t.”
“Why not? Does it really take that long to go under?” I asked. “Look, I’ll go to my unit the second he’s out. As a bonus, I won’t make a stink when they put me down.” No matter how horrible, I’d hold still if it meant I could help Joe.
She growled but nodded. We flanked my brother down the narrow walkway between the rows of units until we reached his. I put his bag underneath his u
nit. Then tightening my hands around his waist, I lifted him onto the lip. He slid inside and lay back on the red nylatec cushion, maintaining a death grip on my hand. His stare bugged from his head. His face blanched.
The woman opened a clear package, revealing the tools of her nursing trade. I held him steady while she pasted an IV patch onto the back of his arm and secured it in place. He’d barely flinched at the sting.
“There.” After strapping Joe’s arms down, she adjusted a dial on the IV tubing. Viscous, yellow fluid chugged down the line to engulf my younger brother. The woman tilted her head at me. “Go to your unit now.”
I ignored her, even when she bumped my hip. I kept my eyes locked on Joe’s.
He yawned. “I’m tired.”
“Rest. I’ll see you soon.” My lids never blinked, not until his closed, and his hand went slack in mine.
Damn. Stumbling back, I wiped the tears from my eyes. Joe…
I reached toward him for one last touch, but a man came up and stopped beside me.
“Miss?” He drummed his fingers on a touchscreen. “If you’ll come this way.” His eyes slid to my tag. “It’s time for induction, Ms. Drabyak.”
I smoothed Joe’s hair and kissed his cheek. Wiping my eyes with my palms, I followed the man to a stasis pod near the main entrance, my legs a solid wreck. The technician stopped and gestured toward the unit. He took my bag and put it underneath. Teeth chattering, I slid inside the chamber and lay back on the hard cushion. The clear, rounded walls wrapped so tightly around me, my arms rubbed the sides. My blood pounded in my throat, charging up into my brain.
“Unit eight, your heart rate is accelerating,” a speaker said by my ear. “Take three deep breaths. Slow exhalations. Panic is the enemy.” Another government slogan. They must think if they said it enough, someone would believe them. The problem was, the people making up the pretty slogans resided well beyond the streets, where panic ruled. Staring at the ceiling, my breath hitched while I willed my heart to a normal rhythm.
Phoenix Arise: YA Sci-fi Thriller (From the Ashes Book 1) Page 3
