It couldn't be more clear to Miran that his teammates didn’t believe Nova was guilty. He couldn’t blame them. If he hadn’t experienced her clever and quick mind firsthand, he’d believe the same thing.
“She wouldn’t go back to the Delight,” Miran said, working through where Nova might go and how she’d do it. Grabbing the old data pad provided by the hotel, he went through all the things recently looked up.
Tossing the data pad on the bed, he went to his gear and started pulling everything on. “I think I know where she is.”
Lazil picked up the pad and tapped through it. “These are only roller schedules and employment notices. There’s no pattern.They don’t even match a destination. And why did she look up these laws? None of it makes any sense.”
“There’s a very clear pattern,” he argued, straightening up from securing his boots. “We need to find the nearest roller ticket area, then you’ll see.”
***
Nova
Nova sighed with relief when the roller finally stopped. She was exhausted, and her ankle was bothering her a little. She was ready to find a place to rest.
The biggest issue was that rollers weren’t designed for human bodies. There was no place to sit, only brace bars that Fielden stood between so they could press their shoulders against padded areas and stay secure in one spot. The bars were too high for her to use so she had to find handholds and spread her legs to brace against the jerky, up and down movements of the roller.
She wasn’t always successful and ended up on her knees once. After that, she hadn’t been able to relax, even when the roller technician assured her that the track was flat and that he’d warn her when it got bad again.
“Are you sure you want to exit here?” the roller technician asked when she moved to exit. “There isn’t much here, and no jobs available."
The worm-shaped vehicle didn’t have traditional doors like a shuttle. Instead, there was a hatch in the floor of the front segment. Most Fielden could easily grab the bar around the hatch and pull themselves up or lower themselves down. She’d had to jump up, grab hold, and wiggle her way inside. It was a good thing she was physically fit, or she might not have been able to get herself loaded!
Looking through the hatch to the track and sand below made her wince. Jumping down was going to hurt.
“This is exactly where I want to be,” she said, throwing her overfull pack to the sand below and then the med box Miran bought. Finally, she dropped the shelter pack she’d bought at the roller station while waiting for her roller to arrive.
“The next roller won’t come around until tonight,” he told her. “Return roller trips are free. You don’t have to worry about the fee.”
“Thank you for telling me,” she said, even though she already knew the roller schedule and the payment rules. It was sweet that this technician was concerned. She could understand why. This area could be dangerous for other Fielden, let alone an outsider who might not be familiar with the hidden risks.
“You should probably stay within the circle's borders," he suggested.
“I will,” Nova lied. Small towns like this one were called circles because they were built in a round shape on reinforced ground. It was the only way to keep the buildings from sinking into the sand over time.
Crouching down next to the hatch, Nova lowered herself through until she was dangling. Bracing herself, she dropped and tried to take most of the impact on her good ankle. She still ended up stumbling a little but was able to regain her balance quickly.
Gathering her bags, she rushed out from under the roller. Once she was clear of the rails, she turned to watch the roller move away. This was it. There was no going back now.
By the time she faced the circle, several Fielden had left their homes and were watching her. This was a small circle with only several hundred residents. Her presence was probably the most interesting thing to happen in months.
Leaving her things next to the roller rail, she walked the narrow solid path to the circle. She spoke to the first adult she saw and ignored all the ones peeking around corners or out of windows.
“Greetings, could I speak to the Circle’s Center?” she asked. The elected leader of a circle was called the Circle’s Center.
“I’ll get the Circle’s Center,” a child further inside the circle said and hurried away.
“What are you?” the Fielden facing her asked in a male voice pattern. He wasn’t being rude, only curious. As soon as she said her species name, everyone in the circle would be looking up information about her so they didn’t accidentally insult her.
“I’m a human female,” Nova said.
Another Fielden walked up to stand next to the other one and also spoke with a male pattern. “I’m the Circle’s Center," he said. “Why are you here? We aren’t producers here, there aren’t any jobs.”
“I want to Live the Path,” she said.
She could hear some humming from the Fieldens. The pitch of this hum was their version of surprised interest.
“This is a good place for that,” the Circle’s Center said. She could hear the pride in his voice.
