“You got the Star of Truth, do ya, girl? Who are ya, anyway?”
She shrugged and let her braid fall back into place. “So who’s the oldest?”
The man examined the face of each girl. He walked around them, stared first from his real eye, and then turned the glassy one that did not blink toward them.
Grinning, he pointed at Brie. “You be the eldest.”
Ari swept him a mock bow. “Nope, I am . . . by four minutes.” She stacked three repocs for each of them on the counter.
Muttering under his breath, the vendor filled the tall glasses. Ari flipped an extra repoc up in the air and caught it.
“Thank you.” She dropped it in his hand. After she finished her juice, she set her glass on the counter and turned to Brie. “I’m ready for new clothes.”
“Me, too.” Brie put her empty glass next to her sister’s.
Torgin downed his last swallow and scurried after the twins. “Where did you get repocs? I have never seen them except in books.”
“Mother always makes sure we have Myrrhinian money before we leave for Myrrh.” Ari pulled out the pouch and handed him a coin. “Keep that in case you need it.”
“Thanks.” He examined the engraving on both sides. “You are so lucky your mother knows about Myrrh. I wish mine did.”
“Someday, she might remember.” Ari tucked the pouch away. “Some adults do, you know.”
“Once my profession is assigned, I will not remember either, so I guess it does not matter.” A unexpected rush of sadness tightened his throat. He swallowed and slipped the repoc into his pocket. “You did not tell me why the PPP adjusts our minds when we turn fourteen. I really need to know.”
Brie clasped his hand. “Are you sure, Torgin? It won’t be what you’ve been taught.”
“If they are going to erase my memories of Myrrh, I need to know why. Please, Brielle.”
Brie took a deep breath as Ari joined them. “A long time ago, after Myrrh was caught in the gravitational pull of Thera, the Galactic Guardians of this solar system appointed the Five Fathers to build Idronatti. Once the city was completed, the Guardians hid Myrrh in a secret dimension within it.”
Ari’s deep voice picked up the story. “Pretty soon the Fathers started to realize that Myrrh had become a deterrent to their vision of the perfect society.”
“Why?”
“In Myrrh, people are encouraged to be individuals.” Brie’s expression was serious. “The Five Fathers want all people to be exactly the same.”
“So what did they do?” Torgin listened intently.
“They created the PPP to keep Idronattians under control while their scientists developed a way to extract Myrrh’s memories from their minds.”
“Why did they not adjust their memories when they were younger? Then they would not have ever known about Myrrh.”
The twins moved closer to each other. Ari’s solemn gaze held his. “They discovered that their mind-wipe destroyed the brains of children younger than fourteen sun cycles.”
“Oh . . .” He felt sick to his stomach. “I guess I would rather not know any more.”
They had stopped in front of a red and white striped tent. “This is where we like to get our new clothes.” Brie smiled at the woman leaning on the counter.
The woman smiled back. “Hello, twins. Are you headed for Myrrh?”
“Yes. This is our friend, Torgin. Today’s his Sun Cycle. We’re taking him to meet Mira.”
“Happy Celebration, Torgin. I’m Nans.” She beamed at a tall man and two youngsters who had joined her. “This is Saaul, my mate, and these are our children, Tima and Tansy.”
Tansy smiled at him. “You have pretty eyes.”
“Thank you.” Meeting these people feels good. I am surprised.
Saaul nodded at the twins. “We’ve been hearing strange stories from Myrrhinians who’ve visited The Borderlands in the past couple of turnings. Make sure you stay alert.”
Torgin’s feel-good response plunged into wariness. “What kind of stories?”
Saaul frowned. “They’re saying that—”
“We’ll be fine.” Ari brushed his concern aside.
Torgin refused to be sidetracked. “Are you sure we still have time to go to Myrrh today?”
“Time’s different here, Torg. We have all we need. Let’s get new clothes.” She guided him through the racks in Nans’ tent.
Brie held up a yellow T-shirt. “I love all the colors!” She disappeared into a changing cubicle and re-emerged wearing it and a pair of blue jeans with brightly embroidered patterns on the back pockets. “All I need are shoes.”
“You already have shoes.” Torgin pointed at her feet. “Why not wear those?”
“I want something more fun! And here they are!” She slipped on a pair of orange rubber-soled shoes that matched the trim on her shirt and pants.
Torgin ran a finger along a rack of shirts. “I have never picked out my own clothes.”
“In that case, you’re about to have a new experience.” Ari held up a bright green shirt.
“I cannot wear that.”
Ari’s eyebrows shot up. “Why not? It matches your eyes.”
“It is not . . . me.”
She sighed and prowled through the racks with Brie, making suggestion after suggestion. Finally, he agreed on jeans, a navy-and-white striped T-shirt, and dark blue sneakers. Mumbling under his breath, he headed to the dressing cubicle.
When he came out in his new clothes, Ari posed in front of a mirror, admiring her jeans, purple shirt, and sneakers.
“We look great!” She gave her reflection a look of extreme satisfaction.
Saaul stuck his head in the tent. “Fadin says PPP patrollers just made the jump into The Borderlands. They’re lookin’ for twins and a brown-skinned boy. You’d better hustle. We’ll create a diversion.” He disappeared.
Nans hid their uniforms in the bottom of a trash can, took the repocs Brie offered, and ushered them out the back of the tent. “Majeska is waiting on Chance Lane. Keep your eyes open. Hurry!”
Copyright
Arrival
UnFolding 1
Author: S.K. Randolph
Editor: Linda Lane
Cover: S.K. Randolph
All rights reserved.
Copyright © 2013, 2015 by S.K. Randolph
No part of this book, text or graphics, may be used, reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including recording, photocopying, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author except for brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.
Publisher:
CheeTrann Creations LLC
203 Airport Drive #A5
Sitka, Alaska 99835
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Revision 01UF-VP-27
Arrival Page 8
