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  Niad sighed. “Any move the Guardians could have made would have exposed the fire to more fuel. Getting the suppression systems up and running was my primary focus. Less fire and working water and gas suppression meant that the Guardians would just have to rescue, not fight the flames as well.”

  “Which is what the Guardians did.”

  “Correct. Tauron waited until it was working, and he began an immediate evacuation.” She waited for the catch.

  “So, the Guardians would have gotten in without your intervention.” The prosecutor smiled, happy to be on familiar footing.

  Niad quirked her lips. “If they could have acted, they would have. Our local detachment doesn’t have water manipulators. They were waiting and trying to think of a way to block the flames before entering the school. They wanted to rescue the kids, but their entry into the sealed space would have caused incalculable damage to the folks in danger.”

  The prosecutor frowned. “You interfered with the Guardians.”

  “No, I stayed out of the cordoned-off area, went in through the tunnels and did my work without anyone seeing me, with one exception. The Guardian pursued me underground. I did not come to him. I did not offer my assistance, nor did I force them to accept it. I repaired the building’s systems as requested and before scheduled. I will present my bill to the school district by the end of the month.”

  The gasp from those in the room at large was synchronized.

  The judge asked, “You would charge for saving lives?”

  “Of course not, but that was not what I did. I repaired a system that I was contracted to repair, just a little earlier than planned. I am not a Guardian, I am not a hero, and I am not an employee of the city. I am a woman who has a skill with mechanical structures, and as everyone in this court knows, it is only against the law if I use it to interfere with the Guardians, endangering myself or others.”

  The judge smiled. “It appears you know your rights.”

  “It was covered in my Citadel training. Know the rules of any world you live on.” Niad inclined her head. “I was an excellent student.”

  The prosecutor spluttered. “Your honour, she interfered!”

  The judge sat back. “I find that she did nothing more than her contract called for. The timing was coincidental, and the result fortuitous. Niad Wyfirth is free to leave.”

  The gavel slammed down, and Niad sighed. She didn’t have her com or money. She was in for a long walk.

  She nodded to the judge and left the courtroom, with the administrator gaping at her and the prosecutor frantically speaking to Guardian Tauron. The apology was obvious in her voice.

  Niad was surprised when Tauron arrived at her side.

  “Miss Wyfirth, may I offer you a ride home?”

  She grimaced. “I suppose since you are the reason I am here that it is only appropriate that you take me home.”

  He smiled ruefully. “I did not anticipate this response. You did not do anything wrong.”

  She held up her hand as folks stopped to stare at them. “Enough. I know what my place is here. I will continue my work and deal with the fallout of my being hauled off in cuffs. Just take me back to my neighbourhood.”

  His lips tensed, but he nodded. “Right. Address?”

  She rattled it off, and they left the courthouse. His vehicle was parked in the VIP stall, and it had its own guard. The riot runner was in good shape, but it could use a tune-up. She said as much.

  She sat in front of him, and he held the controls around her.

  “Would you consider a position at the base?”

  His words were rumbled in her ear as they lifted off and cruised a few feet above the paved streets.

  “What position?”

  “Mechanic and occasional Guardian? It appears that you have a skill set that has been overlooked in the past. I would like to see you use it.”

  “Why now?”

  “I have my reasons, but I am guessing you do as well.”

  “Why would you say that?”

  “Three times. You applied three times and were rejected out of hand. You were going to apply for a fourth, weren’t you?”

  She shrugged. “Of course. I have more training in disaster and combat situations than most of the Guardians in operation around the globe. I have been pushed to the edge and pushed back. All I wanted was a chance to give back to my people.”

  “I will give you that chance. Give me a week and wait for the messenger. You will be a Guardian.”

  She sat in silence and thought about what he had said until he stopped in front of the shop and dismounted from the runner. He helped her off the seat with a careful grip on her hands.

  “Thank you for your help today, Citizen Wyfirth. We could not have brought them to safety without you.” He spoke in a loud and clear voice so that all of the neighbours who were still sweeping their shop fronts could hear it.

  “It was an honour and a privilege.” She gently tugged her hands free and headed into the shop.

  Her parents greeted her with hugs, and her mother stroked her hair back from her face and smiled. “Well?”

  Niad winked. “I have made it to the interview phase. Now, we need to wait a week and see what happens next.”

  Her father hugged her again. “We are ready.”

  Chapter Three

  Her mom’s voice called out, “Niad, we have a high-priority overhaul coming in. Can you do it?”

  Niad closed the panels on the transport she was working on and called out. “Sure. Let Mr. Nikotha know that his vehicle is back in working order and to stop letting the kids pour juice in the engine.”

  “Will do. What flavour?” Mlina chuckled.

  “Yinga berry. It smells great but is hell on his fuel-exchange system.”

  “Right. Do you have the worksheet?”

  “Just let me clean up. That stuff is sticky.”

  She washed her hands in the shop sink and dried them before she returned to the worksheet and filled in the details of time and damage.

  Her mother greeted the priority client, and Niad blinked as she recognized the body of the man standing in front of her. Guardian Tauron was having a day off, or that was the impression that his elegantly simple day attire gave her.

  “Here you go, Mom.” She placed the info sheet on the counter. “I suppose you have something in need of my attentions?”

  He turned away from her mother and stared at her with surprising blue-green eyes. High-family eyes. The same eyes that Mlina had. “I have a riot runner in need of a tune-up.”

  “You are in a hurry?” She smiled politely.

  “I am on call.” He inclined his head. “How long will it take?”

  “A simple tune-up will be an hour. Full recalibration would be another hour.”

  “Aim for full calibration and keep it as operational as you can. If I have to go, I will only have a few minutes’ notice.”

  “Show me the runner and I will get this going.” She looked to Mlina. “Mom, you have the info you need?”

  “Yes.”

  Niad clapped her hands and looked at the client.

  He took her outside and showed her the vehicle. It was not the same as the one she had been on on the way back from the courthouse, but it was in need of her services.

  “May I watch?”

  She blinked. “Um, sure. Do you mind if I use my talent to speed things along?”

  “No, do what you need to.”

  She grinned, fired the vehicle up and flew it around to the work bays. She settled it in a cradle and dismounted. He jogged in behind her.

  Niad glanced at him. “Please settle against the wall. You can ask questions, but I don’t want you in any danger of getting dirty. That outfit costs more than the runner.”

  As she spoke, she started to remove the panels she needed to see the situation, and after that, she used her talent to move hoses, flush lines and reconnect them. The electronics were t
rickier but less dangerous. She removed one system at a time, removed corrosion and set it back in place.

  A smooth movement of her hand over the side panels removed dents and scratches.

  The cross wiring of the controls made her frown until she realised it was deliberate. The right indicator was rigged to the windscreen defroster and the left was set to activate both signals.

  She smoothed that little bit of confusion out, knowing that it was there to confuse her.

  Niad started the system up, checked the emission levels and settled it back in place. “You need a new filter.”

  The client was staring at her with wide eyes. “Sure.”

  She went to the supply area, got the filter and removed the old one. It had granite dust and black soot in it. This guy got around.

  She set the filter into place, started up the runner and backed it off the cradle and out to the front staging area. The client followed.

  “Okay, go and pay my mom and the runner is back to you.”

  “Your mother? Are you adopted?”

  She laughed and waved him inside. “Please, pay the lady.”

  She and her mother shared a hair colour, but her eye colour was all low-family green-brown. Well, folks saw that her eye colour was low-family, but that was her business. Niad loved both her parents, but since she wasn’t allowed to take her mother’s name, she would simply be her father’s daughter.

  He went inside and paid for the tune-up, and she watched through the plexi. When he emerged, he throttled the power and smiled at the slick hum of the propulsion unit. “It is nearly silent.”

  “It was designed to be. Don’t let friends mix up your electrical connections. You can get into trouble that way.” Niad smiled. “Have a nice day, and I hope you don’t get any calls.”

  He paused. “You recognized me?”

  She winked and turned to head into the shop. “Yeah, I have a thing for shoulders. Your lips are rather precise as well. Have a nice day.”

  She heard a chuckle as the door closed behind her. The client flew away on the riot runner, and Niad exhaled in relief.

  “Well, did he quibble about the bill?” Niad grinned.

  Her mother shook her head. “Nope. He took the talent charge in stride. Do you know him?”

  “We met in court. He works with the Guardians.” Niad leaned on the counter.

  “Are you tired?”

  “Naw, just stressed. What is on the agenda for today?”

  “Madam Welming ran her transport without coolant again.”

  Niad groaned and headed into the repair bays. Time to assess all of the damage while keeping a vid of every move she made. Madam Welming liked to argue, but she also liked having a woman working on her vehicle. A vid kept her from kicking up too much of a fuss when the bill was handed over.

  The smell of scorched wiring made Niad wince, but she turned on the hovering vid camera and opened the first panel. Time to earn her rent.

  She was covered with smudges and scorch marks, but after four hours of cursing and replacements, she had the vid and the worksheet ready for her mother to do the billing and the final call.

  “Advise Madam that she should get herself a new vehicle. This one doesn’t deserve that kind of punishment.”

  Mlina laughed. “You look like hell. Go have a shower, and we will take you out for dinner.”

  Niad slumped with gratitude. “I will be down in a few minutes. Where is Dad?”

  “Off filing our business license. Apparently, there was a goof on the paperwork, on their end.”

  Niad grinned. “Of course it was their fault. I will be back in a few.”

  She left the office and headed out the door, down an alley and up a set of exterior stairs. She stripped off her work suit and peeled it down to her waist before she registered that there was a man in uniform sitting on her couch.

  “Ah, Guardian Kimso. Pleased to meet you. Pardon me, but I was on my way to take a shower, so if you would get the hell out of my home, that would be nice.”

  He was wearing his helmet with his mouth exposed. “Tauron said you were witty. He didn’t say you were beautiful.”

  “I am filthy, cranky and have the urge to take something mechanical apart and that means you.” She glared at him.

  “What?”

  “The body is made up of hydraulics and electrics. I can manipulate both. So, say your peace and leave.”

  He held up a message sheet. “I have an invitation to join the Guardians on a trial basis for you. That would demand some civility.”

  She finished peeling off her suit and stood there in her underwear. “It would if you had delivered it to my place of work. Breaking into my home to do it speaks of subterfuge and that speaks to shame. So, knowing that this invitation is not being made public is going to make me less than keen to have you here. Please, give me the message and leave.”

  He rose to his feet and extended the message slip. “I was told to be subdued in delivering it.”

  She took the slip and tried not to look up at the man who was easily eighteen inches taller than she was. He was of Oefric descent and a master of multiple shapes. Kimso was definitely pretty if his jaw was any indication, and his shoulders were even better than Tauron’s.

  Niad read the message and frowned. “It doesn’t say where I should go.”

  “We will meet you here on the morning you join us. It is tradition.”

  She snorted. “It sounds like a wedding.”

  He shrugged. “There are certain similar aspects. Your father is giving his permission right now.”

  Niad scowled. “So, he is stuck there until I agree.”

  “Basically. You will join us?”

  “I will.”

  “Excellent.”

  He tapped the side of his helmet and stated, “He is cleared to leave. She has agreed.”

  Kimso listened to someone on the other end and inclined his head out of reflex. “Understood.”

  He released his helmet and smiled. “Congratulations, Guardian Wyfirth. I look forward to your first day.”

  He walked toward her door. “Enjoy your shower.”

  She locked the door behind him and headed to her bathroom. She needed the pounding of water to clear her head of all the thoughts and swirling plans that had rushed to the fore.

  Niad spent ten minutes under the spray before she turned the water off and wrapped herself in a towel. She walked to her closet and opened it, noting that her Citadel robes had been pulled out and examined. She smiled and smoothed the fabric, tucking it in next to her festive and bright casual clothing. She would wear her Specialist garb again one day. She could feel it.

  She got dressed, brushed her hair, put on some earrings and a few bangles that she had designed, before heading back to the shop. Her parents should be ready if her father had been set loose.

  Niad bit her lip and turned from side to side. If everything went well, she would soon be in the armoured body suit on a daily basis. Her fun clothing would have to wait for weekends and days off, but she would always have to have her suit nearby. It was a burden she desperately wanted to bear.

  After stepping into appropriate footwear, she walked down the stairs to the repair shop.

  Her father had made it home in record time, and he and her mother were speaking quietly.

  She grinned. “If this is my last night of freedom, let’s go somewhere fancy.”

  Mlina blinked. “You got the offer?”

  “I did. And from what I was told, Dad signed off on it.”

  Nmir’s handsome features darkened with his blush. “They needed my signature as your nearest family member.”

  The wince of pain on her mother’s face was hard to watch.

  “Come on. Get dressed and get him up and running. I have worked up an appetite and want to have a fabulous dinner before my life changes any more than it already has. One fabulous family dinner with someone else doing the dishes.”<
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  She knew that her parents couldn’t resist her relentless cheer. Her mother got to her feet, and her work clothing was engulfed in a swirling spiral of energy that changed the composition until she was wearing an elegant dress that fit her still-youthful form faithfully.

  Nmir stayed still as his wife ran her hands over his body, and his clothing turned into something a little more formal.

  Niad watched her parents giggle during the exhibition of her mother’s textile talent. It was that talent that allowed Niad to fabricate what she needed when a piece was missing. Reshaping on the molecular level for her was restricted to a foot square. Her mom could make clothing whenever she wished. The Skarrow family was known for their design skills.

  When everyone was appropriately clothed and scrubbed, they headed out of the shop, locking up before they went in search of a restaurant worthy of their finery.

  It was time to enjoy their time together. It was about to come to an end.

  Chapter Four

  The next three days were business as usual. The Guardians didn’t announce an addition as they normally did, and no one heard a peep that a new apprentice was being taken on.

  Niad focused on getting all of the restorations finished and clearing the work orders so that her dad would be able to manage when she was gone for her first rotation.

  She was beginning to think that she had been lied to when her mother came into the shop, which was uncharacteristic of her.

  “Niad, I think you have visitors.”

  Niad finished clearing the fuel line and connected it back into its proper place. “I will be right there, Mom.”

  “Okay, dear, but I don’t think they are going to wait long.”

  She sealed the unit, tested it and recorded the clearing on the work order. Niad washed her hands, wiped smudges from her skin and headed for the office.

  The four Guardians of their city were standing in their bodysuits and masks. Each one had a helmet tucked under their arm, and the three men and one woman looked toward her as she walked in.

  “Good morning, Guardians.”

  Guardian Homik stepped forward, her voice was clear. “It appears you are our new recruit, Niad Wyfirth.”