Navigating the Stars

by Maria V. Snyder

  Niall releases me. “It’s getting late and you should get some sleep.”

  That’s not gonna happen, but I restore the game system to its original settings. Niall takes my hand and we walk through the mostly empty corridors. A few late-working scientists are also heading to bed and a couple hurry past as if on an errand.

  I gesture to one of the cameras. “Is someone monitoring them?”

  “Yes. We used to review them daily, but after the attack my dad ordered a security officer to be on watch around the clock. Guess who has the oh-four to oh-eight-hundred-hours shift.” His wry tone requires no response. “Three hours of sheer boredom, followed by an hour of watching everyone grab breakfast and report to work.”

  It’s just past oh-one-hundred hours. “You’re going to be beat. I’m sorry-”

  “Don’t worry about it.” He squeezes my hand. “This was more important than sleep.”

  We continue to my unit in comfortable silence. I open the door. Half expecting a parental ambush, I pause in the threshold.

  “Do you want me to check your room for dust bunnies?” Niall teases.

  “No need. I’ve recruited them and now I have a cadre of dust bunny assassins at my beck and call.”

  “That’s hard core. I see you’re well on your way to a life of crime.” He tugs me into the entrance area. Closing the door, he leans toward me. “Better kiss you while I have the chance.”

  When his lips meet mine, all sorts of tingles race through my body. His kiss is tentative at first, but soon deepens. I wrap my arms around his shoulders and I’m finally able to run my fingers through his tousled hair as I open my mouth. A low growl vibrates in his throat. His warm hands press on my back, drawing me closer until the space between us shrinks to nothing. The thuds from his racing heartbeat vibrate on my chest. Or is that my heartbeat?

  Niall pulls away and I protest. He rests his forehead against mine. “It’s late.” His thumb traces my jaw. “And you’re still healing.”

  “I see you’re going to be the sensible one in this relationship,” I mock grouse because he’s right and step back.

  “Someone has to be. Night, Mouse.”

  “Night, Toad.”

  After he leaves, the warmth of his touch lingers on my skin as I head to my bedroom. I’m dreamily replaying our kiss in my head when I’m jolted back to cold reality. All sweet thoughts are banished as fear’s icy tentacles wrap around my stomach.

  My mother is sitting at my terminal. She’s wearing a robe over her night clothes. The screen is filled with Lan’s symbols. I must have left it up in my haste to talk to Niall.

  Mom swivels. Her arms are crossed and a dangerous expression is stamped on her face. “What is going on? Where were you?”

  So much for waiting until morning. At least she didn’t freak out and call security. “Is Dad awake?”

  “No. Why?”

  “He’s going to want to hear this, too. And for the record, I planned to tell you both in the morning.”

  She studies me for a moment. “All right.”

  Mom goes to wake him and I sort the information into a logical format. I calm my nerves with the reminder that my parents are reasonable and intelligent.

  When they enter my room, I’m ready.

  “What’s with all this fuss?” Dad asks, yawning.

  They stand behind me as I explain everything, showing them the symbols and the Q-net’s interpretations on my screen. When I finish, there is silence. I’m afraid to turn around, but can’t stand the suspense.

  My mom’s left hand is clutching my father’s forearm while her right is covering her mouth. Dad blinks at me. A half-smile tugs at his lips as if he’s trying not to whoop out loud in joy.

  Dropping her hand, Mom recovers first. “Send me the files.” Her voice is higher than normal. She’s excited but trying hard not to show it.

  I do as requested.

  “That’s…wow…I can’t believe…Li-Li, do you know—”

  “Spencer, we need to discuss this in private,” Mom says.

  “But Li-Li has—”

  “Has done something illegal to get this information.” She turns to me. “Get some sleep. We’ll talk to you in the morning.” Mom practically pushes Dad out the door.

  That actually went better than I’d expected. It’s a relief to have come clean. I change into my pajamas and get into bed. My fate is no longer in my hands so instead of worrying, I think of Niall’s touch.

  The next morning, I’m “invited” to join my parents in their conference room along with Officer Radcliff, Officer Morgan, and Dr. Milo Jeffries and Dr. Kara Gage, who are the two highest ranked scientists on base after my parents. Oh boy.

  “Lyra, we’ve been discussing Lan’s discovery,” Mom says in a formal don’t-argue-with-me tone. “She had collected all the relevant information, and, by bringing it into the Q-net, you aided in the translation of some of those alien symbols. The credit for the discovery will go to you both.”

  I open my mouth to protest. Lan did all the work, I was just lucky, but a warning glare from my mother stops the words.

  “Miss Daniels,” Dr. Gage says. “We’ve also decided to keep this discovery a secret from DES and the rest of the base for now. We believe the looters have access to DES’s database and the Q-net and do not want them to find out about the additional Warrior planets.”

  Understandable.

  “We need you to promise not to divulge this information to anyone,” Dr. Jeffries says.

  I swallow as my blood rushes to my feet, leaving me lightheaded.

  Seeing my reaction, Officer Radcliff asks, “Who else knows?”

  Oh no. Taking in a breath to keep from passing out, I exhale slowly. I don’t want to get Niall into trouble so I explain that I panicked and called him, but he advised me to inform my parents and escorted me home right away.

  “Officer Niall Radcliff can be trusted with this information,” Morgan says.

  “Anyone else?” Radcliff asks.

  “No, sir.”

  “Can we trust you, Miss Daniels?” Dr. Jeffries asks.

  That question rubs me the wrong way. Angrily, I go from a defensive mode to offensive. Keeping my tone cold and voice even, I say, “The looters almost killed me, Dr. Jeffries. I’m not about to let them know there are more planets out there for them to pillage.”

  Although it’s not visible, I sense my parents’ approval.

  “Fair point, Miss Daniels. Can you remove the file of Lan’s symbols from the Q-net?”

  “No. But I can bury it so it’s very hard to find and add security measures to alert Officer Radcliff if anyone tries to access it.”

  “Good. Your mother informed us that you were…worming last night.” Jeffries’ lips twist as if the concept is distasteful to him. “Did you learn anything about the looters?”

  “No, sorry. My terminal…ah…limits my reach.”

  “DES hasn’t a clue either,” Dr. Gage says in disgust. “They have the full power of the Q-net at their disposal, yet they are unable to find the looters let alone stop them from worming into the star roads.”

  With the mention of worming, the group looks to Officer Radcliff. Warning bells go off in my head and I brace myself for whatever’s coming next.

  Mom says, “Normally, when someone breaks the rules, the base leaders decide the punishment. However, since you’re our daughter, we have a conflict of interest so we abstained from this decision. Doctors Gage and Jeffries have consulted with Officer Radcliff and agreed with his recommendation, which is not subject to change.”

  Meaning I can’t argue. The strength in my legs ebbs, but I keep my knees locked as I meet Radcliff’s gaze.

  He doesn’t smile. He’s all business. “You’re mine for the next ninety days, Miss Daniels. Go pack your clothes and any essential items you may require. Wait for me in the living room. I will escort you to your new quarters.”

  Every centimeter of my body goes numb and my thoughts jumble into gibberish
with Radcliff’s order. A glance at my parents’ pinched expressions confirms that I did indeed hear him correctly—I’m going to spend the next ninety days in detention.

  All six adults are staring at me, waiting for a response or a reaction. I do the mature thing. “Yes, sir.” I turn on my heel and leave before I do the immature thing and burst into tears.

  Back in my room, anger burns away the fear. Ninety days is excessive. I’m a first time offender…well, first time I’d admitted to illegally worming. Plus I’ve been nothing but helpful when they needed me to find Xinji’s deleted files. Radcliff is an ungrateful jerk. Shoving jeans and shirts into a duffle bag with more force than needed, I vent my frustration. I include the security jumpsuit and boots—I’ve been meaning to return them. Argh. I’m way too nice. Hmmm…that could work in my favor. Maybe I’ll get time off for good behavior.

  It’s hard to think of what essential items I might need to sit in a white room for days on end, so I toss in a few basics. My parents should be allowed to bring me stuff. Right? I only know what Jarren told me. Which reminds me. After I finish packing, I connect to my terminal. First I bury the file in the Q-net and mound protective measures over it.

  Then I message Jarren:

  2522:150: Well it finally happened. I’m headed to detention for illegally worming. Out of all my friends and family, I think you alone would be proud of me. I’ll try to remember that when I’m staring at the white walls all day. Was it really that bad? I hope not, but I can’t do anything about it now. What sucks the most is I was trying to help find the looters. At least I pieced together some of Lan’s research for my parents. Poor Lan—I miss her so much. To me, it’s only been a half a year since I last saw her. My sentence is ninety days so if you discover any information about those looters, please send it to Officer Tight Pants right away. It’s that important! Otherwise I’d ask you to send him a scrambler. Well…no I wouldn’t. That’s too nasty. Maybe a butterflier just to annoy him—let him chase it around the Q-net for a few hours.

  I think about it and delete the last four sentences. No need to get Jarren into trouble too. Then I sign off. I sling my bag over my shoulder and scan the mess I left behind, seeking anything I missed. I try to do the look-on-the-bright-side thing. Ninety days isn’t that long. It took us ninety days to travel to Yulin, and that…seemed like forever and I was busy. Great. I suck at looking-on-the-bright-side.

  Radcliff and Morgan are waiting for me when I exit my room. Morgan opens the door and gestures me to precede her. I glance back to see if my parents are going to say good-bye, but they’re deep in discussion with the others. An ache squeezes my stomach as I leave.

  When we enter the security area, I slow, not sure exactly where to go. Believe it or not, I haven’t spent much time in this part of the base before—all the kids avoid it—but I’ve done some exploring when I was younger. Enough to know to circumvent it if at all possible. We pass offices on the right and, after a long expanse of blank wall on the left, there are double wide doors propped open. Inside is a big area covered with mats. Punching bags hang from the ceiling and other workout equipment rings what is clearly the training room. A couple of officers are sparring. I catch a glimpse of black hair before we’re out of sight.

  Is that Niall? I’ve been avoiding thinking about him. Will he really visit me every day and bring me candy? Would his father let him? Would that be another one of those conflicts of interest? Guess I’ll have plenty of time to ruminate about that.

  After another couple of turns, I’m lost. We go left down another long hallway. Numbered doors mark both sides. Radcliff stops at three-oh-one, which is the last one on the right. He enters a code on the security pad and places his hand on the scanner. As light leaks from his fingers, my throat tightens.

  This is it.

  My cell.

  Black and white spots swirl at the edges of my vision. My temples throb.

  More beeps sound. “Place your hand here, Miss Daniels.”

  All moisture leaves my mouth, but I manage to say, “Call me Lyra, please.” Being called Miss Daniels always sounds like I’m in trouble. Yes, I know I am in trouble, but the thought of being called Miss Daniels for ninety days would be…unbearable.

  He studies my expression. “All right.”

  I splay my fingers and press my palm on the glass. Radcliff taps on the pad again and the door unlocks. He enters. Taking a steadying breath, I follow.

  Fourteen

  2522:150

  Bracing for an assault of white, I slow to a stop in surprise. We’ve entered a housing unit. It’s a little bigger than a standard size, but not as big as my parents’. I blink, staring at the common room, kitchen area—

  “Something wrong, Miss…Lyra?” Officer Radcliff asks. The skin around his eyes crinkles as if he’s amused.

  “I thought…” I’m reluctant to say the word detention aloud just in case he forgot why we’re together. Yeah, I know, it’s silly, but a girl can hope.

  “While it would be within my authority to have you confined to a cell, it would hardly be fair at this time.” He gives me a weighty stare, implying it could be in my future. “You’re on probation. You can stay in Niall’s old room.”

  He leads me to a small bedroom on the right side of the unit. It’s next to a washroom, but they’re not connected like in my parents’ unit. There’s also no terminal or screen.

  Radcliff notices my concern…okay my panicked expression. “Your activities on the Q-net will be supervised at all times.”

  I’m not happy about it, but I understand why. “What about my school work?”

  “That, too. You can do it on the terminal in my office. Also you’re not allowed to leave this unit without an escort.”

  This is starting to sound like detention without the white walls. “Escort?”

  “Me or one of my officers. That’s what probation means.”

  I open my mouth to protest, but a hardness in Radcliff’s gaze stops me.

  “Do you understand, Lyra?”

  “Yes, sir.”

  “Good. Because if you don’t follow these rules, you’ll be spending the rest of your probation in detention.”

  Radcliff leaves the bedroom so I can settle in. It takes me all of two minutes to unpack. Then I sit on the bed. The blanket and pillow smell faintly of Niall, but otherwise there’s no other sign that he once stayed here. The walls are rather plain without the screen. I’m still a bit stunned about the turn of events. Uncertain how I feel about the situation, I wonder what’s next.

  Radcliff knocks on my door. “Your escort is here.”

  Well that answers that. I join him in the common room. “Where am I going?”

  “Lunch and soch-time.”

  “Oh.”

  His eyes crinkle again, but he refrains from commenting. Instead, he tilts his head at the door. My escort. Right.

  Niall is waiting outside. He’s in uniform and has donned his serious demeanor so I suppress the urge to hug him. It takes effort, I could really use a hug right now.

  Sweeping an arm out, he says, “This way, Miss Daniels.”

  I glance at Radcliff. He’s watching us. Does he know about us? I’ve no idea and I’m not going to wait around to find out. Instead, I head down the hallway with Niall at my heels.

  At the first intersection, I stop.

  “What’s wrong?” Niall asks.

  “I don’t know which way to go.”

  “But I thought—”

  I just shake my head. “I’m not that familiar with this area—it’s not off limits, but I never had a reason to be here…before.” And I was more than a little freaked out on the way in, but I don’t say that.

  “All right. Follow me.”

  Niall navigates the turns without hesitation. We pass a handful of security officers. A few nod to Niall and give me curious stares. Some grin at me and one guy with spiky brown hair with the tips dyed blond, who appears to be around twenty-five or so A-years old, slaps Niall
on the back as he walks by.

  Unable to endure the silence, I say, “Do they—”

  “Yes. Everyone knows.”

  Oh. “Because we held hands in the corridor last night?”

  He huffs. “I wish.”

  I wait. “Is there something else?”

  “Let’s just say I became a little overprotective when you were recovering.”

  That’s sweet. Once again the desire to hug him warms my chest.

  He stops. “However, my father made it clear that when I’m in uniform, I’m to maintain my professionalism. In other words, no hand holding in public. Otherwise I won’t be assigned to escort you.”

  I’m just happy that I can spend time with him. Maybe this probation thing won’t be too bad. “All right.”

  He squints at me. “You don’t seem that upset.”

  Ah, the male ego really is fragile. “Considering that I was convinced that I’d be spending the next eighty-nine days in detention, I’m just glad that you’re not smuggling candy in to me through a slot in a locked door.”

  Niall laughs, but then sobers. “I think this is an excessive punishment.” He swirls his hand, indicating the both of us. “But I’m happy knowing you’re safe. At least for the next eighty-nine days.” He continues down the hallway.

  His comment worries me. “Should I be concerned? Is there a chance the looters will come back?”

  Ah, there’s that familiar scowl. I almost missed it.

  “We don’t know where they came from or where they’ve gone, so yes, there’s a chance. Slim right now, but once those other pits are opened…”

  There will be more Warriors to steal and destroy.

  Niall reaches for my hand, but stops. “We’ll protect you. No need to worry.”

  But what about the rest of the base?

  After soch-time Niall escorts me to Radcliff’s office where I use a terminal to work on the school assignments I missed that morning. When my head starts throbbing, I rest my forehead on the edge of the terminal. It’s been ten days. Why does my brain still hurt? It’s so frustrating that bones, muscles, and skin can heal so fast, but the medical professionals still don’t have a quick fix for concussions.