He considered her. “Is that what they taught you?” he said after a beat. “To keep you from controlling the crale?”
“I told you,” said Ana, placing a hand on the bars. “It’s not possible to control a crale.”
“Ana, you have no idea what’s possible,” he said, eyes glinting. He placed a hand on the bar just above hers, and heat shot up her arm. “Let me out of here. I’ll show you.”
The Black Room was opening before them, the flight path clear: Ana would free Rho, then he’d reveal her to be Alara and show her just how rich the universe could be. Then, he’d crush her.
Just like the real Noah Drew.
What thefuckwas she doing?
AJ jerked back from the bars as if they’d scalded her.
No.
She couldn’t fucking do this. She wouldn’t. Her character didn’t belong in this story any more than AJ belonged on this show. She didn’t act, and she especially didn’t act with Noah Drew.
“I’mneverletting you out,” she hissed. “Ever.”
She turned and walked out of the brig, giving the nearest camera a death glare for good measure.
Todd’s Coverage, Episode 3:“Sticks and Stones”
When the Captain returns injured from an away mission, First Mate Zora takes command. As the suspense mounts, sparks fly between Zora and cyborg Navi in Sickbay. Meanwhile, killer-brute Bill Pyrus recognizes Rho as a fellow fire weaver and outlaw—Bill promises to maintain his silence, for a price.
In the low lightof the guest terrace’s automated tiki torches, AJ and Toni dragged two Adirondack chairs before a state-of-the-art copper brazier.
“How did we getthisjob?” muttered Toni, as Dave and Xiaobo sauntered down the stairs from the main house, ferrying a bucket of ice and two six-packs to their courtyard.
“Our superior upper-body strength,” said AJ, winded from the effort. Toni laughed and stooped to key her preferred settings into the firepit, summoning a ring of blue flame. The night air was cool and fragrant; as AJ collapsed into the nearest chair, she drank it in.
“That fire’s nothing compared to you and Anjalee today, T,” said Xiaobo, handing out beers.
Toni’s eyes gleamed. The big news of the day was that, after skippingthe entire week of preproduction and the first two days of filming, Anjalee had finally arrived on set.
“For real,” said AJ. “I saw the whole thing from control. Your scene in sickbay? You could cut that tension with a knife.”
Toni smiled. “We shall see.”
Xiaobo snickered. “Oh, right, Toni, like you’re not already plotting your next run-in.”
Toni’s curls bounced as she laughed. “Can you blame me?” It went without saying that whoever paired with Anjalee on camera would feature heavily in the final cut.
“Heads up, Scion of Darkness…” said Dave.
Noah was making his way down the stone steps now. Probably fresh from one of the private dinners Em had been hosting for studio brass at the main house. AJ and the other unknowns had yet to be invited, but according to Ian, they were a real dog and pony show.
Noah looked more tired than usual as he stepped into the courtyard. He nodded to their group but continued toward his room, in keeping with Rho’s isolation.
“Yo, Noah,” Xiaobo called out. “Want a beer?”
Noah paused. His eyes landed on AJ with a hard expression. Like he knewexactlywhat she’d done today. AJ felt her cheeks color.
She had also had a small scene with Anjalee that afternoon, just after Ian had asked her to bring Noah food—the producers’ third attempt to cross Ana’s path with Rho’s.
“Hey, Navi!” AJ had hailed the cyborg sex worker with a golden heart.
Anjalee had turned slowly, her stunning tigerlike green eyes wide, as if trying to remember her own character’s name. She was one of maybe three people on earth who could pull off Navi’s costume. The lower half included black thigh boots and a candy-apple-red miniskirt; the upper half was basically blue body paint.
