Page 3

Shestares off asIrearrange myself in the bed, picking at the food she brought me.

“Wewere sitting at the table eating dinner when the call came; it was days early and to say the least,Iwas not ready.I’llnever forget the look on my dad’s face when he hung up the phone.MomandIwere both a mess within a matter of minutes.They’dalready made me pack my bags, andIcan remember standing numbly in the yard, watching as he loaded them into the trunk.Whenhe turned toward me,Iran, fighting him the entire time he was trying to get me in the car.Nothingeither one of themsaid would soothe me asIbegged them not to send me away.Inthe end,Dadhad to physically pick me up and put me in the pod they had bought for me.Tearsflowed down his face the entire time he kept telling me how much he loved me and thatIhad to be strong and all that shit.”Ireach up, wiping a stray tear off her face as she relives the last moment she had with her family. “DamnLacie,IwishI’dnever watched that video.Iwonder now ifIshould’ve fought them harder.Wouldit have been better to stay behind with them?Whydid we make it when so many others didn’t?Mymother’s hugs and my father’s strength are whatI’llmiss the most.Idon’t know how to be alone.EventhoughIdrove them nuts most of the time,Ialways knew they’d be there.”

“I’mas torn as you are,Briar.Maybewe should pretend this was a video clip from an action movie or something.Isimply can’t comprehend that there is no going back.Imean, we’re in spaceBriar, on a real live spaceship with … aliens.Ourfamilies, friends … everything is gone.Idon’t believeI’meven capable of understanding or reconciling those facts entirely.Allthat’s happened is making me question everythingI’veever known.Whyme?Somany innocents and others who were more worldly or knowledgeable than a little girl no one wanted, but her papaw.Andnow he’s gone too.AmIgrateful to have woken up?Absolutely.ButIdon’t thinkI’veever felt more lost.”

“Lacie,Lordknows the moreIthink about it, the worse it gets.Allwe can do now is take it one step at a time.Wewere told what was going to happen, andIhate to admit they were right for the most part.Theywould tell us that now it’s our job to make the best of this.Idon’t think we have any other options, to be truthful.

Whilewe were at dinner, they announced that we would be leaving this ship soon to stay on another one.Ifeel like a stray with no place to call my own.Qwincame in just asIwas leaving, saying that a doctor would arrive shortly to give us permanent translators.

Lacie, we are soooo out of our league out here.Humanscouldn’t even make it to the moon without issues.Howare our simple minds going to figure all this out?Theremainder of our race is now completely dependent on these aliens.Godhelp us and our ignorance.Thefew things we were good at won’t make a difference here.”

“Briar, my heart is truly broken, andIknow you feel the same way, but we’ve got to find a way to stay … or find something positive about all this, or it will rip us apart inside.Imean, we’ve lost everything, and at this point, we have two choices … wallow in our pain or move on.Personally,I’mnot a fan of crying; it’s always made me sick, soIneed to stop these tears and decide howI’mgoing to cope with all these changes without falling apart every time my mind realizes this is our only option.

Mygrandfather’s dying wish as he sent me off on that bus was for me to survive and live for both of us—a wishIplan to fulfill.I’mnot going to sit back and hide in the corner, weeping in despair and waiting for others to make all the decisions that will affect the rest of my life.Wehave an opportunity to be more than we were, andIintend to be a big part of it.”

“Giveme a few more days to cry and possibly wallow a little more in self-pity,Lacie, and thenI’llstand beside ya, girl.”

Chapter Three

LACIE

Thelights getting brighterin our room has me groaning.Sleepdidn’t come easy last night, and nowIhave a slight headache.Runninga weary hand over my face,Ican’t miss the fact that my eyes are still swollen and tender from all the cryingIdid yesterday.Swingingmy legs over the side,Islide down the ladder heading toward the bathroom, only to walk in and realizeIhave no idea if we have any toothpaste, lotion, or anything.

“Ugh,Destroyer, can you hear me?”

“Ican,Mistress, how mayIbe of service?”

“Dowe have any toothpaste?”

“Thereare several bottles available for your use in these receptacles.SAGEwas adamant thatIbe well stocked when it came to your everyday conveniences.”

Severaldrawers open from the wall, andIshake my head at the oddness of invisible spaces.Ilean forward, quickly pulling out my selections.ThemomentIretrieve them, it retracts seamlessly back into the wall.Walkingto the sink,Istand here once again wondering how to turn the water on.Iknow theshower thing doesn’t use water, butIdidn’t think that applied to everything.

“Ugh,Destroyer?Canyou show me how to activate this sink?I’verun my hands over it and pushed every buttonIcan see.”

“MistressLacie,Iunderstand your confusion.Iwill apply this knowledge to the holo pads for the others after we are done here.Doyou see the rectangles on each side?”

“Yes.”

Theone on the right is hot, and the left is cold.Thewater on the ship will feel different from what you are accustomed to.Inthe future,Iwill share other ways to freshen your breath and maintain the health of your teeth.

“Thankyou.”Ihit the rectangle, and yep, she’s right.Thewater comes out thicker, but refusing to let it bother me,Ibrush my teeth quickly and grimace at the taste whenIrinse my mouth out. “Yuck.”Iswear the ship laughs at me.

I’mjust sliding my jeans on whenIhear a soft knock at the door. “Comeon in.”

“Ididn’t think it was possible, butIbelieveIfeel rougher this morning thanIdid yesterday.”

“Metoo.I’msure it’s gonna take us a couple of days before we start feeling like our old selves.”

“Ifyou can smell my bad breath all the way over there,I’msorry,Lace, but my mouth tastes like roadkill.”

“Here, let me show you how to turn the sink on and the magic drawers full of bottles.ButI’llwarn ya now, the water tastes worse than roadkill.”

Quicklypulling my hair into a ponytail,Istep out whileBriarfinishes getting ready.Walkingaround our small room,Imake my way over to what theDestroyercalled a replicator.Refusingto ask for help this time,Ipress one of the pictures on the front screen.Secondslater, it beeps, andI’mshocked when the door slides open to reveal what appears to be a coffee cup sitting inside.

Grabbingthe handle,Ibring it up to my nose.Itsmells like coffee, but not exactly.Sippingit slowly,Ilean back against the counter.Itnever dawned on me that the food, and lord knows what else, would be so different.Thethought of never having another hot fudgeSundayis almost too devastating.Lostin my own thoughts,Ijump when a voice suddenly sounds out around the room.

“Attentionall!Yourrising sustenance is now available for consumption in the dining chamber.”