Page 149 of The Space Between Stars

Her mouth opened and closed, but no words came out. She’d started them down this course and, like it or not, Calver had committed to it. Now she had to find a way to change his mind. She should say it now: “No.”

The breeze billowed. The sails snapped. Why couldn’t she say no?

“We have nine years to plan. That’s longer than I’ve been aboard this ship.” And surely it would be long enough for them to come up with another way to collapse Tera’thu’s power structure without martyrdom. “How long does it really take to topple an empire?”

She hadn’t expected Calver to laugh, but she had hoped for something in the way of relief. Calver’s jaw worked in circles as he stared into the wood of the deck. ‘You just have to make sure that, when it’s done, the Tume’amic are freed.’

The sudden understanding nearly split her. Just when she’d thought her brother’s humanity had been removed from him, it turned out his driving factor was magnanimity.

Her lips curled in over her teeth. This had suddenly become far more complicated. He thought she wanted revenge. He didn’t realize her motivation came from the standpoint of ending Cul’Mon’s experiments before they progressed.

“The fact that they harbor your genetic material does not make them your children.”

‘Yes it does. I am responsible for their existence.’

“How can you say that?” Calver’s description of what had been done to him had been clinical. A mechanical extraction—which was almost more horrifying than the alternative. There had been no physical contact, no free will, no biological desire, no element of human-led procreation.

‘I chose to Survive. I didn’t have to.’

She shook her head. “Calver, they will never know you. They used you for stock.”

Calver’s face fixed back into its signature stone wall. ‘Just promise me. No matter what I do. No matter how far away I seem.’

The Luck of the world tilted. Fankalo bit her cheek and closed her eyes, tumbling into the endless fathoms. But they spilled out differently than ever before. It was as though she’d come to a precipice. A valley of futures to one side, another to the next. Wherever she descended from here, there would be no return.

“I promise.”

As an entire ecosystem of Luck slid rapidly away, the solid spark of her brother flickered. Fankalo opened her eyes. Calver had succumbed to his ailment, cringing on the deck. “You’re going to go away again, aren’t you?”

Twitching, gasping, Calver managed to scratch upon the paper pad. ‘I never make it very long.’

THIRTY-FIVE

CALVEROUS

Year: 748 Post Cataclysm: Present Day

Location: Jiradesh Desert

The walk from the command sector’s infirmary tent passed quickly and without unwanted eyes. Only the sky remained awake, glaring purple and blue against the sands. Calver marveled at the way his back felt as he stepped. No burns. No pulling, no tearing, no itching—no barbs. Stranger still, there was a bubble stuck in his chest and nothing seemed to dislodge it.

He was a sapping fool. Raimee’s exact words had been “I don’t have anything to lose.” Not exactly a declaration that he was anything to her beyond the best survival tool at her disposal. And yet, every second with her seemed worth all that had happened to him. Like each moment of his life had happened in order to bring him there, so he could warm her up for five minutes while they conspired for a future that might keep them together.

All he had to do was uphold his end of the plan. This time, he would carry it through. This time, he would redeem himself. This time, he wasn’t alone.

Calver wound through pitched tents towards the mess wagon. A mellow golden light outlined its wooden door, lifting his spirits ever higher. Niklaus was still awake. He could tell Calver everything that had transpired after his collapse. He might have even turned Mastico to their cause. The Major General could be their greatest proponent in fighting back. If he knew they were headed for an ambush, he could plan his own defenses, right under Thyatira’s nose.

Calver didn’t knock on the door, but slammed it open. Niklaus was there, fresh bottle in hand.

Calver started.

“Unless it involves me sitting here on my ass, enjoying a nice quaff, keep me out of it.”

The bubble of exuberance that had carried Calver here popped. Niklaus’s compliance might have been a thin thread to hold his hopes on, but he was sure there was still a man behind the addict who would help him. He snatched the bottle and smashed it against the wagon’s metal frame. Amber liquid pooled on the floorboards, draining through the cracks. Niklaus stared at Calver like he was an aethersprite.

“That was a thirty-year.”