planned to go back to the academy, graduate, and become a soldier to protect her people. But then Christian came along, and now she needed to protect him.
*
The next day Grace woke up with an itch in her gut. She had to do something to reawaken her courage. She bundled up Christian and went to see Adyar, an elder who handled food preparations for the village and had a gift for concocting healing remedies. Adyar loved Christian, claiming the child’s bright eyes brought back some of her spark. Sometimes Grace had to pry him out of her arms when it was time to leave.
After she drank some of Adyar’s sage tea and kissed Christian, she left the village and headed into the forest. She hadn’t been in the woods in a long time. The air grew colder the deeper into the trees she walked. The brisk October air cooled her cheeks. According to the natives, winter was coming early. Grace missed her village in Ojai, where the southern sun stayed around all year long. She pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders and continued walking down the trail. Though she appreciated the simple life on the Outside, she had grown accustomed to the luxuries of the city center and her cottage at the end of town. She missed being able to connect with her father at the swipe of a finger. And she really missed hologramming with Lucas, especially when he teased her about being the hottest “mom” he’d ever known.
She headed deeper into the forest, where she had parked the hovercraft three months earlier. It had been kept dormant and hidden, out of respect for the natives’ ban on technology. Also, she didn’t want to risk getting tracked. But that morning, the longing for something familiar had swelled in her heart, and she needed to feel connected to her life again. Checking her personal messages offline would help take the sting out of being homesick, even though she didn’t know where home was any more.
The hovercraft was buried within the bushes and it took a few minutes to weed through the branches. Sitting inside the craft, she reached under the seat and took out her digi-pad. Excited to reconnect, she hurried to activate it. The device booted up and sprang to life with a symphony of chimes. She quickly downloaded the messages to view offline. The files were organized by date and level of urgency. The first one was a hologram from her father, General Joseph Strader, delivered July 27, 2346.
The hologram illuminated the inside the hovercraft. Tears sprang into Grace’s eyes as she reached out to touch her father’s arm, but her fingers slipped through the 3D rendering, making her miss him more.
“Grace, please tell me the news I’ve just received isn’t true. I’m specifically referring to you stealing a hovercraft and leaving the Seattle CC with Christian. I’m having trouble believing you’d actually pull a stunt like this. Do you understand the extent of your consequences? Not only for stealing the craft, but also for taking the child. He doesn’t belong to you.”
She paused the message. How could her father say Christian didn’t belong to her? He belonged to Grace the first time she picked him up and their eyes locked. There was a connection, regardless if the council members agreed. Christian loved Grace. And she could provide a safe and loving environment, despite her age. Wasn’t that enough? But pleading her case to a hologram wasn’t going to change anything. After a few moments, she resumed the message.
“I’m not saying he can’t belong to you. I’m just saying there are rules, and yes, they apply to you. If you want to fight for him, running away isn’t the right approach. You’re not winning any favors with the council. I hope you’ll reconsider your decision and return to the city center to face your charges. Contact me as soon as you have received this message.”
Grace sat back, pondering her father’s words. It was going to be a long day.
3
A va spent her “time” inside the white space
*
The next day Grace woke up with an itch in her gut. She had to do something to reawaken her courage. She bundled up Christian and went to see Adyar, an elder who handled food preparations for the village and had a gift for concocting healing remedies. Adyar loved Christian, claiming the child’s bright eyes brought back some of her spark. Sometimes Grace had to pry him out of her arms when it was time to leave.
After she drank some of Adyar’s sage tea and kissed Christian, she left the village and headed into the forest. She hadn’t been in the woods in a long time. The air grew colder the deeper into the trees she walked. The brisk October air cooled her cheeks. According to the natives, winter was coming early. Grace missed her village in Ojai, where the southern sun stayed around all year long. She pulled the blanket tighter around her shoulders and continued walking down the trail. Though she appreciated the simple life on the Outside, she had grown accustomed to the luxuries of the city center and her cottage at the end of town. She missed being able to connect with her father at the swipe of a finger. And she really missed hologramming with Lucas, especially when he teased her about being the hottest “mom” he’d ever known.
She headed deeper into the forest, where she had parked the hovercraft three months earlier. It had been kept dormant and hidden, out of respect for the natives’ ban on technology. Also, she didn’t want to risk getting tracked. But that morning, the longing for something familiar had swelled in her heart, and she needed to feel connected to her life again. Checking her personal messages offline would help take the sting out of being homesick, even though she didn’t know where home was any more.
The hovercraft was buried within the bushes and it took a few minutes to weed through the branches. Sitting inside the craft, she reached under the seat and took out her digi-pad. Excited to reconnect, she hurried to activate it. The device booted up and sprang to life with a symphony of chimes. She quickly downloaded the messages to view offline. The files were organized by date and level of urgency. The first one was a hologram from her father, General Joseph Strader, delivered July 27, 2346.
The hologram illuminated the inside the hovercraft. Tears sprang into Grace’s eyes as she reached out to touch her father’s arm, but her fingers slipped through the 3D rendering, making her miss him more.
“Grace, please tell me the news I’ve just received isn’t true. I’m specifically referring to you stealing a hovercraft and leaving the Seattle CC with Christian. I’m having trouble believing you’d actually pull a stunt like this. Do you understand the extent of your consequences? Not only for stealing the craft, but also for taking the child. He doesn’t belong to you.”
She paused the message. How could her father say Christian didn’t belong to her? He belonged to Grace the first time she picked him up and their eyes locked. There was a connection, regardless if the council members agreed. Christian loved Grace. And she could provide a safe and loving environment, despite her age. Wasn’t that enough? But pleading her case to a hologram wasn’t going to change anything. After a few moments, she resumed the message.
“I’m not saying he can’t belong to you. I’m just saying there are rules, and yes, they apply to you. If you want to fight for him, running away isn’t the right approach. You’re not winning any favors with the council. I hope you’ll reconsider your decision and return to the city center to face your charges. Contact me as soon as you have received this message.”
Grace sat back, pondering her father’s words. It was going to be a long day.
3
A va spent her “time” inside the white space
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