Starless: Half Light

by Alyssa Rose Ivy

  “Are these words supposed to mean something to us?” Laci had moved on to another arrow. She was examining it the same way, as if to find flaws. “Because I understand some of it, but not all of it. You are well educated. That should count for something. Otherwise why become educated?”

  “School isn’t something you finish quickly. It takes years and years to really know anything. Doctors who are specialists? Forget it. They are in their thirties by the time they are done with training.” That, in addition to being less a science person, was why I wasn’t interested in pursuing that career. And again I was rambling for no reason.

  “No one asked you to perform medical work.” Darto frowned. “But your education combined with your gifts should be enough for you to figure this out.”

  “I need to know what I’m supposed to be figuring out first.” Nothing had really been explained to me yet. It was all in broad terms.

  “Of course.” Laci replaced both arrows in her bag. “That’s why Kelby is going to come up with the plans. Your only job is to make them a reality.”

  Only. She made it sound so easy.

  “You do make a perfect pair.” Only Cami’s head was visible out of the top of the tank now.

  I groaned. “Please don’t go back to that again.”

  Darto shrugged. “None of us agreed to drop it. You asked, but that doesn’t mean we agreed.”

  “Okay. Share the plans Kelby. Let’s get to this.” I still had no idea how I was going to help anything, but we weren’t going to start talking about my love life again.

  “I need time to finalize them.” Kelby shifted his weight from foot to foot.

  “Okay. Then take that time.” I was going to act like I didn’t want him around even if I did. Not because I was into him, but he was still the one I trusted most. And he was the one who’d sworn to protect me.

  “You are going to have to come with me.” Kelby glanced over.

  “Why?”

  “Because I need your help.” He held my gaze.

  “But I thought my help was only needed after you had the plans.”

  “I also need help with the planning.” He gritted his teeth.

  Cami and Laci laughed. Was I missing something?

  “No. I need her help.” Kelby’s voice was firm. “She’s an expert on things I’m not.”

  “Okay. Okay.” Darto smiled. “Don’t let us get in the way of the plans. You are in charge after all.”

  “Right.” Kelby rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m in charge.”

  “You doubt it?” Darto straightened.

  “I’ve never known you, or King, to hand over control easily.”

  “King has his reasons. I have mine. But you are in charge of this mission. Well, you and Angie.” Darto nodded toward me. Calling me Angie twice? What was this? “Now head to it. We don’t have a lot of time.”

  “Let’s go.” Kelby reached out for my arm.

  “Where are we going exactly?” I followed him out with a glance over my shoulder. Cami and Laci were watching us.

  “You’ll see.” He linked his arm through mine.

  “Oh. That’s specific.”

  Part 5

  Rachel

  9 Rachel

  There was nothing good about our current situation. We’d barely left North Star, and we had already attracted trouble. The banging grew louder. We had to do something.

  Noah pushed me behind him. I appreciated the chivalry, but I could handle this just as well as he could. Which didn’t mean much. But if we were going to die, I didn’t want to die without trying my best. I stepped forward so Noah and I were standing shoulder to shoulder. “We face them together.”

  He nodded his acquiesce.

  Amsi beeped. “Perhaps you should open the door before they ram it down.”

  “Good point.” Opening the door to intruders sounded counterintuitive, but no matter how things went down, we were going to need a working pod. “Unlock the forward doors.”

  Noah shot me a worried look. “There’s really no other choice here, right? The reboot is going to take too long?”

  “I don’t see any other options.” I wasn’t ready to admit defeat, but I knew there was no easy way out. Hopefully, this was a case of mistaken identity. We were in an unmarked ship. It was entirely possible they were searching for someone else, and once they discovered it wasn’t us they’d let us go.

  “How long is the reset going to take?” Noah asked.

  Amsi beeped. “Another ten point five minutes.”

  “Too long.” Noah wrapped his hand around mine.

  There was the sound of pressure releasing, and the door began to lift. There was a second pressure lock at the end of the ramp. They’d have to close the first door before they could move through to this section, so we’d be okay in terms of air. As to whether we’d be all right otherwise, that was a different question.

  We stared down the dark tunnel, and I strained my ears. I heard a pop. Someone was accessing the first lock. I squeezed Noah’s hand. I really hoped these weren’t ‘shoot first ask questions later’ type people. My heart rate accelerated, and I started to sweat. What was taking so long?

  When I was about ready to lose it, two figures, dressed in matching silver striped suits walked in. Neither wore a helmet, which meant the air content of our pod suited them. Still, that didn’t mean they were from Earth. Some species could handle nearly any kind of air content.

  They each wore dark purple sunglasses that completely blocked their eyes. The only feature setting them apart from one another was that one had long flowing silver hair. The other appeared to have no hair at all.

  We stared at one another for a few moments. No one saying anything.

  Amsi was the one to finally break the silence. Beep. “Please state your business.”

  “Which one of them is the feeler?” The one with the long hair asked Amsi. By the sound of her voice, she was female. If she was saying feeler she probably knew about starmates. There went the mistaken identity theory. I lost some hope.

  “I am.” Noah stepped slightly in front of me. “Leave her out of this.” He tried to detangle his hand from mine, but I held on tighter. He wasn’t facing this alone.

  The one with the long hair removed her glasses, revealing eyes that were reflective like mirrors. All I could see in them was myself. The rest of her face was normal, but it was impossible to look at her. I didn’t like the worried girl I saw reflected back. “Very well. Our visit will be quick if you agree to comply and allow us to tow you back to our base. You need to stop your quest for Soldrum immediately. The only way we can ensure that happens is if you wait out the storm with us.”

  “Uh, there are so many things I need explained about that statement.” Noah met my eyes. “First, why should we give up on our visit to Soldrum? Second, what storm are you talking about?”

  “The storm. The chaos swirling all around us. Can’t you feel it?” The girl tucked her sunglasses into the top of her suit.

  “And the whole reason we’re going to Soldrum is to stop the chaos.” At least that’s what Ella had explained it as.

  “But the fate of the universe depends on you abandoning your quest.” The other one took off his sunglasses. He too had mirrored eyes.

  “The fate of the universe depends on us going there.” Noah stood his ground. “So if you’d excuse us, we need to be on our way.”

  “No.” The male shook his head. “We are right. You are wrong.”

  “That sounds like something a toddler would say.” Noah’s shoulders relaxed some.

  “A toddler?” The female frowned.

  “Like a child. You are right, we are wrong?” His voice was lighter. Was he no longer perceiving them as a threat?

  “We are seeking Soldrum out to correct the equilibrium.” Seeing Noah relaxed had a soothing effect on me. “Maybe you are confused about why we’re going.”

  “The equilibrium is better off as it is.” The girl replied. “Much better.” />
  “Yeah, our home planet is slated for destruction so we will have to disagree with you there.” Noah tightened his hand around mine. “Maybe we’re just going to have to agree to disagree.” His voice was harder again. The momentary change in his demeanor was gone.

  “What is one planet compared the fate of countless others?” The male frowned.

  “Everything if it’s your planet.” I’d finally discovered Earth existed. I wasn’t losing it. “Besides it’s not just our home planet at risk. Lots are at risk if the Andrelexa Emperor stays in power.” I probably shouldn’t have let that last part slip. No one had said anything about the Emperor yet, but I wanted to make as strong a case as possible in case our visitors were running with incorrect information.

  “Balance is a tricky thing.” The girl held her hands out to the sides as if mimicking a scale.

  “I get that. But what I don’t get is why you want us to stop.” We were helping the universe by tracking down Caspian’s life mate. Not hurting it.

  “Because if you find Veraka and unite her with Caspian, and we have two sets of starmates united in the universe, we may see the end of days as we know it.” The male closed his eyes. “I cannot even fathom the damage.”

  Veraka. Was that Caspian’s starmate’s name? Noah hadn’t mentioned a name.

  “The end of days as we know it?” Noah tilted his head to the side. “Is that necessarily a bad thing? I mean not everything is peachy keen in the universe right now. Not even on Earth.”

  The girl looked right at Noah. “I am sorry your brother was killed in cold blood, but that has nothing to do with the current situation.”

  Cold blood? Noah still hadn’t told me what happened to his brother. Had he been murdered? My heart hurt for him.

  Noah stiffened. “Excuse me?”

  “Oh. I can read your entire past.” She pointed to her eyes. “It is all mirrored back to me.”

  I gasped. All mirrored? These people could see inside our minds?

  “Have no fear. We wish you no ill will.” The girl turned toward me. “As we explained, all we ask is you come with us and wait out the storm. You will be together at all times. Starmates are a beautiful and rare thing. You must cherish the bond you have.”

  “We already told you we can’t stop. Finding Caspian's mate-did you call her Veraka? Is that her name? Finding her is the only thing that might save Earth.” Noah was heated.

  “Yes, that is her name, but nothing you do will bring your brother back.” The girl stepped toward him. “Nothing.”

  “This has nothing to do with my brother.” Noah clenched his jaw.

  “It has everything to do with your brother. You can’t lie to us.” Her voice was soft, but since her eyes were only mirrors, it was impossible to know what her true feelings were. The eyes revealed so much about a person.

  “You can’t stop us from finding Caspian’s starmate. I can’t lose Earth. Not when I’ve finally found it.” I wasn’t losing it. I couldn’t. We’d been through so much already.

  “You’ve found Noah. He’s what you’ve been searching for. Not a planet that is meaningless in the scheme of things.” The girl whirled her hands around.

  I looked into her eyes despite myself. I closed them quickly. “Earth isn’t meaningless.”

  “You still don’t remember. The stories buried deep within.” The girl’s voice was soft again. “You both have such tragic pasts.”

  “Why should we listen to you at all?” Noah snapped. “We have no idea who you are or why you’re here.”

  “Because we have the power to end your lives as you know them.”

  “No. You won’t kill us.” If they wanted us dead they could have done it already.

  “No. But we can end your lives.”

  I could feel my forehead furrow. “Isn’t that the same thing?”

  The male shook his head. “You have so much to learn.”

  I shivered and my ears started to ring. The most horrid sound filled my head until I was ready to scream. I closed my eyes, willing the sound to fade away.

  * * *

  I blinked a few times. Confused. We were in darkness. Absolute darkness. “Noah?” I spoke his name softly, trying to remember exactly what had transpired. How had we ended up in the dark? I was standing upright. How strange. I couldn’t have fallen asleep that way.

  I received no answer. I tried again. “Noah?”

  “The feeler is no longer here.” The sharp female voice came from somewhere close by.

  After a moment I placed it. The girl with the mirror eyes. “What?” Panic seized me as details came flooding back, but the memory of how I came to be standing alone in the dark still eluded me.

  “We told you to listen. You wouldn’t.”

  “What did you do to him?” My chest clenched, my throat constricted. I’d never felt fear like this before.

  The voice was closer, but I still couldn’t see anything. “He will recover.”

  “Recover?” I gulped. “Where is he?”

  “We have to keep you separated for now.”

  “Separated? Why?” I strained my eyes to see, but it was all blackness. There wasn’t even the smallest hint of light.

  “Because we can’t have you trying to find Veraka. We already explained what’s at stake if that happens.”

  “What’s at stake is Noah. Where is he? Please. I need him.” This was all my fault. If I hadn’t gone back to Earth he would still be safe in New Orleans. All I’d brought him was trouble. “Please. Don’t punish him. Punish me.”

  “This isn’t about punishment. You don’t need him. You want him. And eventually you’ll have him back.”

  “No. I need him now. If you could stop us why not imprison us together? Didn’t you say that our bond should be cherished?”

  “That was only if you were well behaved. Together you are powerful. Too powerful if we can’t keep you controlled.”

  “Please.” Tears welled in my eyes. “I need to see him.”

  “No. You had your chance. You mocked us. He called us children.”

  “You should have warned me.”

  “We did.” She sounded further away now. “We told you we’d end your lives as you knew them. That is what we did.”

  “I need to know he’s okay. He’s only in this mess because of me.”

  “He would have always been pulled into your life. That’s part of being starmates.”

  “How do you know so much about starmates? Who are you?”

  “You should have figured it out.”

  “How? How should I have?” I was so tired of knowing nothing. Sometimes it was because others failed me, but maybe this time it was my own fault.

  “Didn’t our eyes give us away?”

  “Your eyes are mirrors.” Frightening mirrors I wished I could unsee.

  “Exactly.”

  “But I don’t know what that means. Where are you from? What planet?” I started to walk. I had no idea what I was going to walk into, or where I’d end up, but I was tired of just standing there waiting.

  “I see the Lexas are getting sloppy with their education.”

  “If you are truly like mirrors and can see into my past, wouldn’t you have known that?”

  “We only see the important things.” Her voice was closer again. Either I was walking toward her, or she’d followed me.

  “Like what happened to Noah’s brother…” I couldn’t forget her words. In cold blood. Death was never easy, but murder was worse. Murder meant someone chose to take a life.

  “He hasn’t told you yet.” She said it as a statement. Not a question. She already knew the answer.

  “No. But that’s his right. He can take his time.” There was plenty I hadn’t told him yet either.

  “It is a deep wound.”

  Something touched my back. I jumped.

  “Relax. I’m not going to hurt you.” Evidently it was the female with the mirror eyes touching me.

  Relaxing was the last thing I was go
ing to do. “And I can help him through it.”

  “You have deep wounds of your own.”

  “I do.” I couldn’t pretend otherwise. I’d been lied to over and over and ripped from the only life I’d known.

  “You never suspected?”

  “Suspected what?” There was so much I’d been oblivious to.

  “The time? You really had no idea of the difference?”

  “No. But you knew that. That was important.” At least she pretended to have seen the important things. And I believed her. I’d felt her looking inside me.

  “It is often hard for us to see the small things—your understanding buried deep inside.” She moved my hair off my shoulder and I shivered.

  I stepped back and right into her. “But you have to be able to see how I feel for Noah.”

  “Yes.”

  “Then how can you take him from me?” I’d been through a lot, but nothing could be worse than this.

  “We haven’t taken him forever. Just long enough.”

  “Why did Ella and Etan tell us we had to find Caspian’s starmate, if you are correct in saying we shouldn’t?”

  “Everyone has their own interests.”

  “Even you.” She had her motivations, and they couldn’t be trusted.

  “Yes.”

  “Then why should we trust you more than Ella?”

  “Because right now the fate of the one you love most is in our hands.”

  “That isn’t reassuring.”

  “It’s not supposed to be.”

  “Can you at least tell me who you are? What’s your name?” Anything might help moving forward as I searched for Noah.

  “I am a Reclo. My name is Janda. I don’t see how any of that will help you.”

  “What’s going to happen to me now?”

  “Now you return to your ship and decide where fate will take you next.”

  10 Rachel

  When I blinked again I was back on the ship seated in front of the main console.