Page 52 of Star Champion

Outside the windows—many of them flung open to the outdoors—was a sweeping deck made from more planks. Groupings of rough-hewn wood chairs were placed here and there. A circle of boulders looked to be another place to start a fire. Above, the sky went up, up, up toward floating puffs of clouds and beyond. No smog-filled dome held anything in, or kept anything out.

Then, something soared by overhead. “A bird.” Jemm burst through the open doors and trotted across the deck to watch the little thing swoop away to where it disappeared into the canopy of trees. Birdsong told of others hiding within the branches. The prospect of seeing them lured her to the railing. Her soft boots were silent on the deck’s rugged planks as she crossed its expanse.

TheVash’s heavier footfalls sounded behind her. Beaming, she turned around. “Did ya see it? A bird flew over. A live, flying bird.” Her smile faltered when she saw the telltale line had formed between his brows.

“There are many birds on Chéyasenn. You’ll be used to them by the time you leave.”

“I’m not used to them yet.” She turned back to the railing, scanning the sky while shielding her eyes from the sun that was this world’s parent star.

“I want to get in a practice before luncheon,” he said. “Luncheon is to be served at one.”

“There—another one!” She pointed at the sky.

He scraped a hand over his dark coppery hair, a gesture of frustration she had come to recognize. A few locks of hair stood up crookedly, little rebels in his otherwise immaculate appearance. Sunlight played across his sculpted profile, thawing some of his impatience, but not all. “All right. We’ll take the stairs. We can reach the arena from the lower level, as well.”

On silent boots they descended…into paradise. As they rounded the landing, the stairs spilled out into a vast area of greenery. She knew it was a lawn from vids she had seen, but in reality and up-close a lawn was a lush blue-green carpet of tiny individual plants with soft flat, triangular leaves. It was springy under her boots and under her palm when she crouched down to feel it. The fragrance made her lightheaded with pleasure.

The lawn ended at a pool fringed by boulders and carefully tended plants that was much longer than it was wide. A waterfall tumbled over the boulders on one end, bubbling where it entered the pool. Her reflection undulated on the surface, a stranger’s short-haired silhouette, as she kneeled down to dip her hands in the water. “This sure ain’t what they pump into the mines. That foul brew is reclaimed, and it stinks. This is fresh and real.” She scooped some water into her cupped hands, with reverence. It drained out from between her palms, and she scooped up more, standing and turning back to Prince Klark. “Is it drinkable?”

He stood several body lengths away to watch her, his hands behind his back. It was as if there were an invisible line he had drawn, and he damn well was not going to cross it. “It wouldn’t harm you, but I’m not quite sure how it would taste. The purpose of the water feature is for recreation.”

“Like swimming?”

“And meditation. Plus, the fish swimming in it may not want to share.”

She laughed, finally seeing silver and gold fish darting beneath the surface. Her hands were still cupped, water dribbling down her arms. “Will you teach me to swim?”

Eagerness then dismay—the emotions had flickered in his eyes before he could hide them from her. “At some point, perhaps. We have dallied here long enough.” He turned to go.

“Wait.” She curled her damp hands into fists and pressed them to her chest, drawing air in through her nose. “Before we go, take a moment just to be. To feel the humidity. To smell the living things. The soil, the woods, the leaves. The air here makes me dizzy, but a good dizzy, not Barésh smog, lung-clogging dizzy.”

His deepening frown and impatience to go back inside irked her. Didn’t he ever take time to pause and enjoy life? Was he all business, all the time? “We are here to train.”

“Aye, I know. But do ya have to be such a cog about it?”

“A cog…?”

“Aye. A cog. A sourpuss, an unpleasant person to be around.” She walked to him, her loose fists still pressed below her collarbone. “I will train hard, aye. I swear it, and you know it. My family depends on us succeeding. Your family does, too.”

Discomfort flickered at the edges of his mouth.

“But, before we leave Chéyasenn, I’m going to learn to swim, whether you teach me, or one of the pros does—”

“A pro is not going to teach you to swim,” he pronounced as if issuing a royal decree. “I will.”

She smiled a grin of victory, and took another step toward him. “I want to hike on the paths, too. I want to smell everything, to taste everything, to see the birds, and the trees. All of it. In my wildest dreams I couldn’t have imagined a place like this. I feel like I’ve been caged all my life and now I’m finally free. So don’t ya go acting like a cog about it—”

His warm hands molded to her head to silence her, his slightly roughened thumbs sliding over her cheekbones as he brought his face close to hers. “Jemm…” His whisper was harsh against her lips.

“What?” she asked weakly.

“I have to act like a cog. Else, I’ll kiss you, and I won’t want to stop.”

They stood there, frozen to the spot. The taut muscles of his chest flexed against her fists, his heart thumping hard. “Holy dome,” she said on a sigh. “I might not want ya to stop.”

“We have an agreement, Jemm. To be coach and player.”

“Aye. I remind myself of it every hour of the day.”

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