Page 1
Chapter
One
Roy shielded his eyes. It was time to set sail, now that the bright light would no longer scorch his skin. The three suns of Pyraxis dipped toward the horizon, injecting streaks of crimson into the azure sky. His seaweed barrels stood clean, dry, ready to store today’s catch.
Sea breeze whipped Roy’s face as he tugged on the anchor joystick. The heavy chain rattled, waves splashing on the side of his boat. Roy tapped the coordinates into the console and rubbed his three-day stubble. He’d have to shave before going to the market tomorrow. Not that his customers would care—they were only after the crunchy seaweed chips, harvested in the wild waters, prepared with love. Or so the package claimed. Most of the time, they were prepared with endless fatigue and a sprinkle of loneliness, but Roy suspected that wouldn’t boost sales.
Retreating to his little nook below the deck, he walked past the communication gateway. Despite the radio station’s idleness for the past decade, he checked the transmission at least once a month. The glorious days of making money from the spacecraft docking station were long gone, but closing the dock forever would erase the last trace of his parents. And he wasn’t ready for that.
Sometimes, Roy wondered if he’d remember the commands needed to steer the incoming vessels in the right direction. He slumped on the bench and closed his eyes. The transmission test could wait until tomorrow. Or the day after. And what if he simply stopped responding to calls? The spaceships would just reach the next tower.
With the strong headwind, it would take at least two hours to reach his destination—the spot where he’d found the chewy black seaweed. Enough time for a nap, to chase the sleep that eluded him last night.
The boat’s soft rocking on the waves had lulled Roy into a shallow sleep. He flinched at a bang, blinking awake.
“You’ll kill me one day,” he mumbled, calming his pulse.
It was Neri, knocking on the outer window, her rust-coloured hair flowing in the sea mist. With a grin, she waved at him.
Roy padded upstairs and leaned over the deck. “Hey, Neri. Can you not scare me like that next time?”
“Can you not sleep while working?” The siren replied with a ringing laugh. Her tail flapped as she circled the boat. “Where are you headed, fair sailor?”
“I don’t know. To find some friends who won’t give me a heart attack?” Roy snorted, extending an arm to pull her onto the deck.
Neri flopped onto the ship, her turquoise scales glittering in the golden sunlight. Propping herself up on one elbow, she glanced at Roy. “Did you get it?”
“Hm.” Roy fished out a shard of pyrite from his pocket. Oxidation had painted the golden surface in a mesmerising rainbow pattern.
Neri’s eyes widened. She took the rock in her thick fingers and rotated it carefully. “It’s beautiful. Thank you, Roy. Lynn will love it.”
“I hope so,” Roy muttered, striding toward the steering console. He’d haggled with several market vendors before finding that one, even though the thought of Neri proposing to her girlfriend stirred turmoil in his mind. Long ago, he’d sat on the pier, freshly released from the mandatory military service, the one that should have lasted only a few months. But when the Alliance calls to arms, Pyraxis answers. The war had been long and bloody—or gooey, for the Vraan aliens—and Milo’s last breath had pierced a hole into Roy’s heart.
When he came back, an empty shell searching for purpose, Neri stood by his side. When his thoughts grew darker than the depths of the sea, she tried to help with her siren song. It intoxicated him more than any fermented fruit could ever manage. With all the stupid things he’d said while enchanted, and all the stupid things he’d done, he had almost lost himself. Neri cut him off after he’d proclaimed his undying love to her.
She saw through him. She always did. As his oldest friend, she knew how to read every little twitch in his face. If keeping her friendship meant helping her impress the love of her life, then Roy would do anything to find the prettiest gem that would do the trick.
The terminal beeped as he verified the sail’s direction. “Did you see the black seaweed clumps?”
“They’re still there.”
“Good. You wouldn’t believe how many pre-orders I got on those.”
Ropes of seaweed swung in the breeze as Roy hung them on the drying rack. One by one, he separated the strands, letting the breeze weave through them.
Once finished, he wiped the residue from his hands onto his trousers and headed home. Buttercup, his pet panther, sat at the threshold. The little steel heart charm on her pink collar swayed as she groomed herself. When Roy approached, she let out a dissatisfied grunt.
“I know I’m late, girl,” Roy said, scratching behind her round black ears. “Let’s get you some dinner, shall we?”
He took off his boots and headed straight for the cabinet. Plucking a can of feline food from the shelf, he squinted at the tiny letters. “How do we feel about… wild-caught cod?”
“Mrrp,” Buttercup replied, bumping her head against Roy’s knees.
He swayed, but maintained his balance. The can opened with a loud pop. Patting the bottom, he shook it into the ceramic bowl marked with Buttercup’s name. “There we go. Enjoy, sweetie.”
While Buttercup slurped her dinner, Roy lowered himself onto the couch and crossed his legs. Apparently, even in the mellow golden hour, the suns had drained him. Maybe he had a touch of heat exhaustion. Pulling a blanket over himself, he rolled onto his side and drifted off.
The radio controller’s screech ripped him from sleep. He rubbed his eyes, wondering if it was just a dream. The repeated signal forced him to sit up and snap on his headphones, fumbling to lower the microphone.
