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  “Deal. Let’s get you settled.” Rhennal gestured for her to follow and his black and white clothing swirled in the breeze.

  Her quarters were a good size. She had the entire floor of a building, three floors above Rhennal and Yorvik. It was enough space to avoid accidentally listening in on their amorous activities, and if Nero ever bothered to visit, it would hide her own.

  A change of clothing was provided, but she would have to begin earning credits to buy anything new from the vendors in the commercial centre of the city. That meant she had to catch falling ships.

  In the hangar, Rhennal ran her through a simulator. “The actual ship does not rise until there is a crash on its way down. It is your responsibility to activate the retriever call and get your ass into the catcher.”

  He showed her the controls, grapples and energy beams that would all be at her disposal.

  “The ship uses a halo system, so put it on when you settle in the seat and the ship itself will react to what you are seeing and wish to do.”

  “I ran a halo system in my courier ship.”

  He blinked and rubbed his face. “I have been here a very long time. Tell me, are the Enjels still marauding the star systems?”

  She shook her head. “No. They have been pressured back onto their own worlds and colonies. The Alliance now has a peacekeeping organization that helps sentient races defend themselves against incursion.”

  Rhennal looked up at the rift. “I have missed so much.”

  “But you have found love.”

  He grinned, “True. I was here for seventy-five years before Yorvik arrived. Once he was assigned to the storage area, I knew I would be able to see him frequently.”

  “Where did he stay before you two moved in together?”

  “He was quartered in the service sector. As a catcher, you can move around with impunity, provided that you are always close to the hangar. Once you are fully trained, we can take shifts and that will allow us each time on our own. I tell you, I would love to see one of the plays being put on in the entertainment sector of the city.”

  She blinked, “So, we can go out but they can’t come in?”

  “Yes. This area is sensitive. The survival of the fallen depends on them being safe and cared for. I was shocked when I heard that you were viable, by the way. Your ship did not want to be caught.”

  Harmony was surprised, but then, she realised that Rhennal would have been the one to pluck her out of the sky. “Can you tell me about it?”

  “Of course. I was just heading for a rest period. I study during the day so that my mind is ready for a call. I had just put my head on the pillow when the alarm went off.”

  “Alarm?”

  “Oh, trust me. You will know it when it strikes. I don’t know how it finds me, but it calls you, and you must answer. Anyway, the lights flashed and sounds blared. I got dressed and ran for the hangar. The ship was already rising. You were coming in fast.”

  She sat and listened with rapt attention.

  “I slipped into the ship, put on the halo and took to the skies. The rift was violent, pulsing and throwing power around madly. Your ship was scorched and swaying like a child on a swing as it descended. Smoke curled out of the cabin via shattered-forward screens. I thought you were nothing but ash, but I followed you down and managed to grapple and seize your ship a few feet from the surface of the great river. As fast as I could, I skimmed along and brought you to the restoration centre for the retrievers to extract. It was then that I realised I had forgotten to call them.”

  Harmony gasped, though it was obvious that everything had turned out all right.

  “I struck the alarm, but someone had already ousted the retrievers from their beds. Restorer Nero chewed me out for my lack of attention, and soon, they brought your body out, encased in that plexi tube. I was nervous. A death on my conscience would have haunted me.”

  “Wow. That was an exciting entrance.”

  “Yeah, what was stranger was the amount of biological tissue still intact. I mean, sure you were radiated to a crisp, but normally, they find a hand or foot. Something that has been covered by a glove or boot with the proper shielding. Nope, you were all even from head to toe but still identifiable. It was amazing considering the extra time it took to catch you.”

  She exhaled with a gust. “Does that happen a lot?”

  “No, but now, two years later, you are up and around with memories and a fit form. That is an enviable thing. Most folk here feel lost because their minds were shredded when their bodies burned. It is one thing to start from a blank but another to know that you have been something, have meant something to someone out there in the universe but you can’t remember who.” Rhennal shrugged. “Now, back to the simulator. When the real thing happens, you will know it. The ship calls the catcher it feels is best suited for the catch. It might be me; it might be you. If one of us is out of range, it will summon the other. Don’t ask how. The ship is the ship.”

  It seemed a mystery she was going to have to live with, so Harmony focused on her time in the simulator until Rhennal pronounced her a natural.

  “A few more days and you will be ready for active duty.” He smiled and patted her bald head.

  She looked to his own naked skin, and it suddenly came to her that the connection with the halo might depend on direct contact with the flesh. There was a reason that whatever was singing in her mind had refused to let her grow hair. She would have to apologize to Nero. It wasn’t his fault after all.

  Chapter Six

  That night, she heard the roar of the ship at close range. She ran to her window and stared up at the ship as it headed for the small, dark dot way up against the brilliance of the rift.

  From her window, she could see the restoration building, and on the roof was a group of men wearing ash grey with black stripes. They had boxes and canisters next to them, and as she watched, more of them trickled onto the landing space.

  It took an hour for the catcher to settle the burned hulk of the ship on the landing pad. She was amazed that it fit, but the retrievers sprang into action. They sprayed the surface of the ship to seal it before donning masks and creating a tent on one side of the ship. Seven or eight of them slipped inside while they others monitored the exterior of the vessel.

  Harmony watched as they brought out the plexi tubes on stretchers. One after another emerged from the vessel until there were six of them lined up on the roof. The retrievers supported the tubes carefully and carried them down below.

  When the ship was empty of the fallen, the remaining retrievers tapped the covering that had enfolded the ship. It crumpled together and nothing but dust was left to blow away on the wind.

  She gasped and blinked as she returned to her bed. It was time to get some sleep, but she kept replaying the catch in her mind over and over.

  She closed her lids, and when she opened them again, six hours had passed. Time to get up.

  Breakfast was quiet. With the new arrivals, everyone was busy with something pertaining to the restoration process. She ate what the machine gave her and smiled at the happy-face pancakes that were front and centre on her plate.

  She may not have someone to chat with, but she could always talk to her food.

  Snickering, she ate while her mind sang its morning song. Days were fluid, but those who lived, the restored fallen, worked out a day and night for themselves. Time had no meaning here, but the routine helped everyone get by.

  After breakfast, she headed for the hangar and slipped into the simulator. She had been there for two hours when Rhennal showed up looking haggard.

  “That was quite the catch last night. How did the retrievers know where to be? I mean, that ship was nearly too big for the landing area.”

  “Nearly. Not quite.” He stretched. “I called on them from the ship once I had seen the vessel for myself.”

  “So, you can dispatch them from the air.”

  “You can, it just isn’t advisable. Better to have them rea
dy where you need them.” He grunted. “With larger ships—and we have had a few—there is nothing to be done. We land them in the field nearest the restoration centre and Nero does what he can, but it comes down to triage. There is nothing worse than selecting a woman or a man and finding out that the person next on the list had been their spouse and because of time, they were no longer viable. Those cases are always devastating. The newly restored fades and dies in those situations. It is heartbreaking for poor Nero.”

  She nodded as if she understood.

  “I am glad you understand. Now, get over to the restoration centre before Nero goes out of his mind. You are officially a catcher. You are flying that damned simulator and having a heartbreaking conversation at the same time. Go be with your man.”

  She got to her feet and nodded, sprinting down the steps and across the bridge toward the restoration centre. The guard at the door looked at her robes and waved her through. So, it was true. She could go anywhere in the catcher clothing. Nice.

  The paths through the building were familiar to her. She found Nero looking pensively at the bodies finishing in two of the tanks.

  “Nero. How goes the restoration?” She tried to be formal. Perhaps now that she was a catcher, he would no longer be interested in her.

  Nero turned toward her and crossed the room in long strides. “Harmony, I have missed you.”

  “It has only been two days.”

  “Eternity without you.” He wrapped her in his arms and pressed his lips to the curve of her neck.

  She shivered and held tight to him as she breathed in his scent, and he breathed in hers. “How are the restorations coming?”

  “They are underway. Every tank on this level is full now. If we have another crash, we are going to have to bring in the backup units.” His words were muttered against her neck.

  There was a strange unreality to see the tanks that she thought were empty and each one of them had the seeds of an adult living being in them who had been stolen from life far too soon.

  He tugged her over to his desk and sat down, pulling her into his lap. “I find your living in the catchers’ quarters very hard to bear.”

  “I need to be near the hangar.”

  “As I need to be near the tanks. With this many folk on the go, I wouldn’t be surprised if one of them is tapped as a new restorer just for backup.”

  He cuddled her against him. She pulled locks of his scarlet hair around and wrapped the beaded silk around her hands.

  “We will figure something out.” She stroked her cheek with his hair and turned to kiss him. Her tongue lapped at his, and she was twisting in his arms when the world went mad.

  Lights flickered and a siren blared in her ears. She jerked back.

  Nero was alarmed. “What is it?”

  “Can’t you see it, feel it?”

  “No. What is going on?”

  Shock ran through her as the entire truth struck her in a blast. “I am going to do a catch. Get those backup tanks online.”

  A catcher running through the streets meant one thing, and no one got between her and her destination. She loped up the steps and struck the alarm to gather retrievers.

  When she turned to the hangar floor, where there had been nothing but even stone, there was now a lift that slowly brought the ship up to the light.

  The door opened, and she moved into the ship, settling down and putting the halo on her head, settling the peak between her brows.

  The ship powered up at her touch and the singing burst forth in her mind. This is what it had been waiting for.

  She used her mind and the controls to lift off and head for the rift. She scanned and found the tiny black dot that somehow managed to reflect light. Full throttle, she dodged the energy that crackled around her in whip-like strands. The ship she was taking was small. It was a tiny conveyance usually used from orbital station to the ground.

  Harmony sent out the grapples and snagged her on the first try. The small ship was fastened to the nose of the ship and Harmony turned it to bring it down to the restoration centre.

  “Scans read one fallen. Please react accordingly.” She sent the message to the retrievers, and she got a terse acknowledgement.

  The song in her mind roared in triumph as she settled down and released the small shuttle. The moment she was free, her mind went blank, and all she heard was music and saw light.

  Harmony opened her eyes to see Nero staring at her with concern. She pressed her hands against the wall of the tank and pulled herself up and out with a graceful move.

  She coughed up the liquid delicately and smiled as she flexed her hands. This time, she felt strong.

  You should be strong. We are finally one. I am sorry for the pain, but it was necessary for insertion of my being into your flesh.

  Harmony blinked. “Nero, did you hear something?”

  He was on the ladder and extending his hand to her. “Nothing aside from your coughing. Why, are you hearing more singing?”

  She blinked rapidly to clear her vision. “No. There are words in my mind. There is more than just me in here.”

  He cocked his head. “I don’t understand.”

  She took his hand and her voice said, “She is speaking of me, Nero.”

  He gripped her hand tightly, and his eyes stared into hers. “That isn’t possible.”

  Harmony had to watch while her body stepped down to the observation floor and calmly wrapped itself in a robe. “It is possible. You know it better than most, dark candidate.”

  He flinched. “How can you know that?”

  “Your lover was the light candidate. Now, she is my Avatar. I finally have a voice and it is such a great relief. You should join with him. He has been waiting for you all these centuries, and you have avoided him over and over again.”

  Nero frowned. “Is Harmony still in there?”

  “Of course she is! She is merely unaware of how she got into your tanks again. You might want to tell her that two years have not transpired. She is worried.”

  The light receded and Harmony surged forward. “What is going on?”

  Nero coaxed her onto an exam bed and ran his scans. “You were only mildly scorched. Some light burns on the surface of your skin, but it was all over you, and the easiest way for even healing was the tank. You have been in there for a week.”

  The alarmed chirps and twitters of the scanners got her attention, and she sat up on her elbows. “Let me guess. Something is wrong.”

  “Something like that. Something has been added to you.” He blinked and ran some checks. “Something with the same energy signature as the rift.”

  She blinked and opened her mouth to say something, but her voice was once again not her own.

  Chapter Seven

  “I have been waiting for a very long time, as you measure it, for a match to my frequency. Harmony is more than just a name; she is the ideal candidate as host for a portion of my consciousness. I am the star caught in the tangle above you.”

  Nero asked, “Do you have a name?”

  “No. I have never bothered with names. I am the light half of the rift. All who exist here do so through me.” She inclined her head imperiously.

  Harmony sat back in her own mind and watched with curiosity. Perhaps now she would find out what the hell was going on. It seemed Nero was of the same inclination.

  “Why are we here? What is this place?” He asked it politely, but Harmony saw him flick on a recorder.

  “This place is an accident. Aeons ago, a star began to burn out, and in its panic, it cried for help. I was a rogue star, and I made my way to it with all speed. When I arrived, it was too late. The star I sought to comfort in its last moments had begun to implode. Imagine my surprise when I was hauled toward its collapsing shape.”

  Harmony was surprised. It seemed the rift wasn’t one thing at all. It was two.

  “A planet rocketed toward us and slipped in a moment before I collided with the black hole that had just been born. Togeth
er, we continue my riotous path through the systems and appear and disappear at random. When the first people fell through, the planet woke and tried to heal them. It was only partially successful, and it used all of its energies to create the living conditions necessary for your kind to live. After a time, researchers came in search of us and found us. They fell through and developed the technology that brings the fallen back into the physical world with bodies that can tolerate my radiation.”

  “What of Harmony?”

  “She is perfect for me. I felt that she was perfect the moment that she drew near. She almost escaped, but I pulled her in, and now, here she is.”

  Shock rippled through Harmony. She knew she had felt something pulling at her, but this explained the energy blasts that knocked her navigation out. Son-of-a-bitch.

  “Oh dear. She is angry. I needed her. In time, she will come to accept it.”

  The star faded back and Harmony came through. “Damn it!”

  “Welcome back, love. So, did you hear everything?”

  She wrinkled her nose. “More than everything. I could hear the emotion from the inside as well. She really did need me as a voice, though I can’t understand why.”

  He sighed. “I believe that is where I come in. I am the candidate for the voice of the dark star. I had finally believed that I was in a life path that would keep me away from it, and yet, now I need to confront it.”

  Harmony saw the resignation on his face and stepped toward him, blinking when he flinched back.

  “You are giving off a lot of heat, Harmony. If I ever want to be with you again, I will need to become your equal. That will mean a trip in the ship.”

  She sat back on the exam table. “Explain, but you can turn the recorder off.”

  He blinked and smiled. “Good to know that you can still see the world around you when they are tinkering around in there.”

  “You are stalling, Nero.”

  “I am.” He sat near her on the bed and took hold of one of her hands. She could feel the cool of his skin and hoped that she wasn’t causing him pain.