Lieutenant Crophaven’s words resounded throughout the high ceiling of the loading bay as he addressed the crowd of spectators gathered to watch Team Prime Contact depart. He spoke of duty, bravery, and honor, sending chills up my spine. He spoke like we headed to our deaths.
But he wouldn’t give us inexperienced teens a mission we couldn’t handle, right?
We stood in a line, Sirius on one side of me, and Lyra on the other. Alcor and Gavin stood on either end, making me the center of the team, the woman in charge. The corsair rested to our right, a silver scout bird, sleek and aerodynamic, with pointed wings curving down on both sides around a rounded cockpit of sheer glass. The symbol of the New Dawn, a seventeenth-century masted ship plowing through waves, had been painted on the side along with an identification number.
Lyra leaned over, her dark brown curls obscuring one eye. The other had way too much mascara. She was as tiny as Andromeda and stood on her tippy toes to reach my ear. “Pssst. Where are your parents?”
Lyra’s whole family, including her crazy-eyed younger brother, grandparents, great-grandparents, and second cousins stood in a line, hogging the first row.
“My mom’s at work.” She was the nosiest assistant I’d ever met and she wore too much strawberry perfume. Somehow smelling like fruit didn’t occur to me as a way to prepare for this mission.
Lyra scrunched her nose. “Where’s your dad?”
Pretending to fly on Galaxy Battlefield while I fly for real. The truth hurt more than I thought it would, and I squeezed my fists, giving her a dirty look. Lyra took the hint and straightened back in line.
A roar of applause filled the room, and I snapped back to attention. Lieutenant Crophaven gestured to me.
“This is the time to honor a new generation of leaders and explorers, and for the elders to take a step back. This new world is more theirs than ours. We are the past, and they are our future. These young talents will establish their entire careers here, and rear their own children on these crystal shores. The sprig can only flourish in the sun, far from the mother tree’s shadow. I hand my hope to Nova Williams and her team.”
I broke from the line, wondering if I could live up to his ultra-high expectations. He was testing us, making sure we could run the colony when he grew old and frail like the commander. This mission was a lieutenant-maker, and my one big break. No pressure.
Taking a shaky breath, I recited the Pledge of Service from the Guide.
“I pledge my allegiance to Team Prime Contact and the Guide of the United Federation of Colony Ships. One fleet, courageous and determined to continue life through the preservation of humankind...” My voice rang out, strong and certain, and people bowed their heads with my words. The crowd uttered a single, unanimous “Amen,” completing my call of duty.
With Crophaven’s signal, I led my team to the platform where the corsair waited, fully fueled, for Sirius to rev the engines to life.
The crowd blurred into a sea of white uniforms as I passed. I only recognized a few faces through the haze. Corvus clapped next to Andromeda. She raised her hand in salute and nodded in my direction. Mrs. Hoodcroft, the teacher who’d believed in me since first grade, waved as tears streamed down her face. At the edge of the crowd, Solar sneaked between two burly men. She must have skipped class to see me off, and I gave her a stern look as I passed. She smiled devilishly and signaled a thumbs-up.
Excitement swelled until I thought my chest would burst from the pressure. I felt like a hero for the first time in my life. Today was my day to prove my worth to the colony.
I boarded the corsair, plopping into the cushy co-pilot’s chair. Although I couldn’t fly to save my life, Lieutenant Crophaven suggested I take the co-pilot’s seat due to the nature of the mission. We might not land at all, and I needed to stand at the helm to observe and give Sirius further instructions.
Gavin, Alcor, and Lyra passed me on their way to the passenger seats in the back. Gavin gave me a curt nod, his reddish hair slicked into a plastic mold. Alcor smiled nervously from underneath the veil of his scraggly blond bangs. Lyra saluted me quickly and disappeared to the rear of the ship. I wasn’t worried about any of them. My heart hammered at the thought of sitting next to Sirius. Our last conversation in the biodome hadn’t gone well, and I still had no idea what to say.
I was supposed to order him around and I wasn’t sure he’d listen, even if I was team expedition leader. Too bad I couldn’t order him to love me.
Sirius’ face crested the hatch, and he gave me a hesitant smile, an apology shining in his eyes. A shiny lock of dark hair curved in front of his forehead, and he brushed it back.
Warmth spread through my chest, and I forced my lips to remain thin and straight, nodding as he passed. I wouldn’t let my feelings for him get in the way. I’d worked too hard to screw up my career now. “Sirius.”
“Nova.” He said my name like he held a sweet and delicate rose. Settling into the seat beside me, he leaned over and his lips brushed my ear. “Good luck.”
This time he sounded genuine, and a small, twitching smile crossed my lips before I hid my feelings and threw away the key. “Thank you.”
Sirius switched on the intercom. “Hold onto your miniscreens. Here we go.”
He pulled a lever, and the engines ignited, rumbling the floor underneath my feet. The air roared around us as the corsair lifted from the platform. My stomach sank as the wings tipped a little to the left. Sirius pulled on the controls, and the ship leveled off.
The doors to the loading bay parted, metal screeching as the outside hull broke apart. The ship’s belly opened up to birth us from its loins.
Bright, violet sunlight lit the sight panel, and I raised my arm to shield my eyes. Sirius reached above his head and opened a container. Two pairs of aviator glasses fell out in his lap. He threw me a pair and the corner of his lip curled. “If you’re going to be a co-pilot, you’ve gotta look the part.”
I gave him a sideways glance, narrowing my eyes. “Do I?”
I slipped them on, feeling the cool plastic behind my ears as the brightness muted. The ship glided toward the sun, and my heart sank to the back of my chest with the g-force. The last time I rode in a corsair, we’d crashed into a field of pod plants, thanks to Andromeda.
Pushing the doubt aside, I watched the ground recede, and the jungle rushed around us. We grazed the tops of the trees and the alien ship came into view like a giant, evil eye staring us down. Under the glass sight panel I squirmed as if I were naked and exposed.
I tightened my grip on my armrests. “If the laser beams turns on us...”
“I’ve got it. Evasive maneuvers.” Sirius grinned like he was playing a video game, but this was all too real. He hadn’t seen what the laser beam had done to the jungle.
As we approached the alien ship, the hull stretched beyond the frame of the entire sight panel, so we could only see parts of it at a time. The sheer size overwhelmed me, making our scout ship seem like a fly.
“Don’t get too close. We don’t want them to think we’re attacking.”
Sirius slowed, and the corsair hovered twenty meters from the hull. “Keeping my distance.”
The impenetrable shield of metal stared back at us, giving nothing away. A queasy feeling sickened my stomach, and I forced it down. “Let’s get Gavin in here.”
Sirius clicked on the intercom. “We’re in hovering mode. You can take off those pesky seatbelts. Gavin, your expertise is needed in the cockpit.”
I squinted, trying to decipher their satellite receptors. Nothing about the alien ship made sense. “Can you focus the telescope on the spires at the bottom?”
Sirius pressed the panel, and a screen came up, showing a lower viewpoint from the bottom of our ship. “Sure thing.”
He focused on the closest spire. “Whoa! Look at that. The metal is seamless.” Sirius pointed to the blinking red light at the tip. “It looks like the light sprouted organically from the spire.”
My stomach twisted in a knot. “Get closer. See if you can find any sight panels or any clues as to what those spires do besides the laser beam.”
“I’ll try.”
The doors parted behind us with a swoosh of air, and Gavin came in, eagerness in his eyes. “Reporting.”
“Good.” I gestured for him to join us at the helm. “Look for markings of any kind.” I glanced back to Sirius. “Broadcast the prerecorded message.”
“Will do.” He pressed a button, and I heard the peaceful greeting the commander had composed in all of the languages of the known world. The words lilted in French, spun in Spanish, and cut jagged chunks in German. I leaned over to Gavin, “What’s it saying?”
He shrugged. “We come in peace?”
My eyes bulged. “You’re not sure?”
He crossed his arms. “I know enough. It’s not like I’ve spoken these dead languages to anyone. How am I supposed to know for certain I got the pronunciation right?”
“It’s good enough.” Sirius patted Gavin’s arm. “Sounds very peaceful to me.”
I shook my head and sighed. Muscles bunching under his uniform, Gavin seemed like he used the workout deck more than Old Earth’s archives. These were the best people Andromeda could come up with? I stifled my growing frustration. This is what happened when you let a species integration assistant make important decisions.
Although she did choose me.
Another giant chunk of crystal floated up into the belly of the ship. That could have enhanced our soil for the next six months. It was painful to sit and watch our resources being stripped away after we’d traveled for generations and sacrificed so many freedoms to find this planet.
Like the freedom to choose your job, your spouse.
Would I have chosen Sirius? Glancing over at the perfect ridge of his nose, and the way his arms and chest curved underneath his uniform, I almost thought I would have, but I’d rather have no one than someone who didn’t love me back. So no, I wouldn’t have chosen him. Never in a million years would I pick Gavin with his arrogant cockiness, or Alcor with his gangly nervousness, either. I wouldn’t have chosen anyone.
“Wait.” Gavin moved forward. “Something’s moving.”
My gaze glued to the sight panel as the metal hull parted before us, revealing the dark interior of a gigantic loading bay with strange stalactites. They hung from the ceiling like sharp teeth.
Sirius leaned forward. “Is this an invitation?”
“I hope so.” Gavin stepped forward. “I want to see what they look like.”
“Hold your place.” I straightened, trying to not let fear strangle me. “Keep broadcasting the message of peace.”
Sirius’ hand tensed on the controls. “Yes, ma’am.”
Bright light shot from the hole in the ship, and I cried out, raising my arm to shield my face, despite my aviator glasses.
Laser beam. “Move the ship! Get out of here!”
“I can’t.” Sirius’s face turned red, his jaw tightening, as he pulled on the controls. “It won’t budge.”
Gavin braced himself against the dashboard.
Alcor screamed from the back of the ship. “We’re all gonna die!”
“We’re not going to die!” I shouted and put my hands over Sirius’, helping him pull. “We’ve got to get out of the beam.”
“It’s impossible. It’s locked down the ship.”
This isn’t happening. It can’t be. It was too much like my dream. Maybe if I hit my head, I’d wake up. “We’d better do something, or we’ll have a very bad case of sunburn.”
Sirius spoke through gritted teeth. “I’m trying.”
My hands grew sweaty over his, but I held on, my heartbeat pulsing in every vein.
The beam grew stronger, and I squinted, wishing my glasses were thicker. The voice on our prerecorded message grew low and slow. It slurred the peace greeting in French and faded out.
End game. This is it.
“Something’s happening.” Sirius’ voice held a flicker of hope.
I clutched onto it. “What?”
“Our corsair is moving.” Sirius turned to me, and his face fell. “Toward the ship.”
Beside us Gavin murmured, “Bring it on.”
“Reverse thrusters!” The hull creaked under the pressure, and I thought the entire ship would implode.
Sirius released his hold on the controls and flipped a switch. “The engines aren’t working.”
I wanted to ask what the hell we were going to do, but then I remembered I was in charge. I pulled Gavin down by the collar. “Get the others. Make sure everyone has a weapon.”
He nodded, casting one more eager look at the darkened bay. “Yes, sir. I mean ma’am.”
Sirius gave me a questioning look. “This is a diplomatic mission. You sure you want to meet them fully armed?”
I knew the mission objective: peaceful interaction only. Acid stirred in my gut, and I sure as deep-space-hell wasn’t going in there without lasers. I was responsible for my team and their safety.
I gave him the fiercest look I could muster. “Crophaven, Schmophaven, remember?”
He flashed me a wicked grin. “Right on.”