Page 81 of Echoes of the Tide

“A-Ace?” the woman said, her voice stuttering over the word.

She blanked for a moment before realizing this had to be Anya. “Well, damn. I always heard the Songbird of Alpha was beautiful, but I didn’t realize you would look like this.”

Like a model had stepped off a magazine. That’s how she looked. So beautiful it was blinding a bit, except then Anya burst into laughter that was so incredibly off key and grating to listen to, and Ace realized it was her friend after all.

Anya rushed into the room, reaching for Ace and dragging her into her arms. It was like this beautiful version of the person she knew didn’t care in the slightest if her dress got wet or if she smelled like the sea. Anya just held her tightly and rocked back and forth.

“I’m okay,” Ace said with a chuckle, but then remembered that Anya was hard of hearing. And she wasn’t wearing Bitsy.

So she drew back, holding onto Anya’s forearms and making sure her friend could see her lips. “Anya?”

Anya nodded frantically. “Yes, it’s me!”

Tears burned in her friend’s eyes, turning them red and glossy, as though she was fighting hard to not let them fall. Had Ace earned this emotional reaction? They’d been talking for years, after all. But some small part of her had been afraid their relationship was entirely online. They had felled Alpha together, but did that mean they were friends?

Obviously, her fears were unfounded. Because Anya yanked her in for another rocking hug that nearly sent them both to the floor as they stumbled in the water.

Glancing up, she saw another woman leaning against the door Anya had just come out of. The redhead had hair like fire billowing around her. A sensible pair of pants and a tight black tank covered her body in stark contrast to Anya. The redhead grinned at her and then waved a single hand.

“Mira.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” Ace gasped out before extracting herself from Anya’s grip. She tried to stay facing Anya so that her friend wouldn’t miss the words. “I’ve heard a lot about you two. Though, obviously, we’ve talked before.”

Anya shook her head with a wry grin. “I feel like we’ve known each other for ages.”

She was right. They’d been talking for nearly six years, long before she’d been tossed into Gamma, trying hard to overthrow the people who deserved to be overthrown. She’d just... Ace wasn’t used to people wanting to be friends with her. Even back in Beta, no one had wanted to talk to her that much.

Clearing her throat, she looked over to Mira, who hadn’t moved yet. “I don’t think we’ve spoken yet.”

“Not much, but enough. It’s good to see you. When Maketes was heading toward us with someone in his arms, I had a feeling he might have caved and brought you here.”

Right, this was an awkward conversation. So Ace changed the subject swiftly. “You’re from Beta as well, right?”

“As well?” Mira arched her brow. “Engineering department.”

“Droid research.”

They stared at each other for a few long minutes, and she could feel Anya’s worried stare going back and forth between them until both Beta explants started laughing.

Mira shook her head. “Another Beta reject. Were you working in the droid depot when... Fuck, what was his name? Billy? When Billy ran the place?”

A cold shudder ran between her shoulder blades. “That fucking asshole? Yeah, I did. He tried to grab my ass more times than I could count and then got mad at me when I did my job better than he could.”

“He was bad. I heard whoever replaced him was better.”

“Not by much.”

And just like that, everything softened. Anya threaded her arm through Ace’s and drew her into the village they had made.

The room with the moon pool was, she could only assume, a meeting room. Because as she walked into the next room that was filled with color and stuffed cushions, she imagined this was the room the two of them spent their time in.

Plants hung from the ceiling, their tendrils reaching down for everyone who passed. She almost couldn’t even see the glass, there was so much greenery in here. The floors were covered with layers and layers of carpet in every color and texture possible. Giant cushions were plumped everywhere, likely for seating. The walls were mostly glass as well, and there were small reading nooks with stacks of books.

“I make sure Mira keeps all her metal pieces and parts out of this room,” Anya said, her voice turning slightly scolding. “I’ve stepped on far too many screws already.”

“She’s a bit pushy,” Mira replied from behind her. “You’ll have to be aware of that if you’re staying here with us.”

But when Ace looked at Anya, certain her friend would be angry, Anya was just grinning.

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