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Authors: Christopher L. Bennett
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businesses got wrecked. The curve of the habitat gave Emry an overhead view, her enhanced vision letting her see the townspeople running desperately for cover—and some of them not moving at all.
She had trouble accepting the sight at first. How could anyone act so irresponsibly? The fires, the destruction, they could endanger the whole habitat. Every hab-dweller was conditioned from infancy to make safety a priority. But she remembered the lessons of her father’s rescue work: people sometimes sought release by trashing others’ habs the way they never would their own. And many people who came from Earth or the Sheaf or other large habs had never needed to learn such discipline at all.
Emry suddenly remembered that her mother had been going into town today. Alarmed, she checked her bracelet selfone for Lyra’s locator signal, and saw it flashing along with her father’s on the edge of town. Good, Emry thought, she was with him. That meant she was safe. Now Emry just had to reach them and she’d be safe too.
But she took a moment to talk the boy past his panic and get him headed off for home, in the other direction. And as she raced toward her family, she kept an eye out for other scared kids who might need her help. It was what the Emerald Blaze would do. She was confident that, once her father made sure his ladies were safe, he’d go out and make those bad guys stop fighting. And then he’d save all the hurt people lying in the streets. The Blaze would stay to protect her mother while he did it. So she had to get there soon. Her hero needed his sidekick.
As she rocketed forward, she saw the fighting moving toward her parents. But she saw something else too. One of the armor-suited fighters wasn’t using lethal weapons, and was trying to keep the bad guys away from the townspeople. Emry recognized the symbot from the news—it was one of the Troubleshooters! Here! Wow. With her dad and a Troubleshooter on the case, the bad guys would be in jail in no time.
Once she got into town, the buildings blocked her view of the Troubleshooter and the battle. But those were secondary concerns; she knew where she needed to go. But as she got close, she needed to leap over piles of burning debris, and saw a lot of wrecked buildings and vehicles. The battle had passed right through here. She thanked the Goddess that her mom was with her dad, who would …
Then she saw him. It took her a moment to recognize him. He was down on his knees, shaking. He looked so small, so weak. That couldn’t be Daddy, could it? What was that he was leaning over? It looked like … No, it couldn’t be.…
…
No.
…
No. No, that couldn’t be her. It had none of her vibrancy, her energy, her warmth. It was just …
…
Emerald couldn’t understand what she was looking at. It looked like Mommy … but it couldn’t be … couldn’t be a person … It looked like Mommy’s face … but only half of it was there.… There was a hole and she could see a fire behind.…
Where was Mommy?
Why wasn’t Daddy looking for Mommy? How could he just kneel there, bawling like a little baby over this … that … mound of … that thing .…
Why wasn’t he stopping the bad guys? Why didn’t he stop them from breaking things, and … and that .…
Something knocked her forward, a sound she almost heard over the rushing in her head, and she fell and rolled and that wasn’t in front of her anymore and there was a metal monster pointing something at her, yelling something … and Daddy just bawled … and Emry closed her eyes.…
And then she woke up and strong arms picked her up—Daddy? But no, they were hard and cold and they whirred. She looked and it was the Troubleshooter. His helmet was retracting, folding back behind like origami, and there was a kind face behind it, craggy with a bushy moustache. “You’re safe now, little one,” he said. “Uncle Arkady has caught the bad guys. It will be all right now.” He looked past
She had trouble accepting the sight at first. How could anyone act so irresponsibly? The fires, the destruction, they could endanger the whole habitat. Every hab-dweller was conditioned from infancy to make safety a priority. But she remembered the lessons of her father’s rescue work: people sometimes sought release by trashing others’ habs the way they never would their own. And many people who came from Earth or the Sheaf or other large habs had never needed to learn such discipline at all.
Emry suddenly remembered that her mother had been going into town today. Alarmed, she checked her bracelet selfone for Lyra’s locator signal, and saw it flashing along with her father’s on the edge of town. Good, Emry thought, she was with him. That meant she was safe. Now Emry just had to reach them and she’d be safe too.
But she took a moment to talk the boy past his panic and get him headed off for home, in the other direction. And as she raced toward her family, she kept an eye out for other scared kids who might need her help. It was what the Emerald Blaze would do. She was confident that, once her father made sure his ladies were safe, he’d go out and make those bad guys stop fighting. And then he’d save all the hurt people lying in the streets. The Blaze would stay to protect her mother while he did it. So she had to get there soon. Her hero needed his sidekick.
As she rocketed forward, she saw the fighting moving toward her parents. But she saw something else too. One of the armor-suited fighters wasn’t using lethal weapons, and was trying to keep the bad guys away from the townspeople. Emry recognized the symbot from the news—it was one of the Troubleshooters! Here! Wow. With her dad and a Troubleshooter on the case, the bad guys would be in jail in no time.
Once she got into town, the buildings blocked her view of the Troubleshooter and the battle. But those were secondary concerns; she knew where she needed to go. But as she got close, she needed to leap over piles of burning debris, and saw a lot of wrecked buildings and vehicles. The battle had passed right through here. She thanked the Goddess that her mom was with her dad, who would …
Then she saw him. It took her a moment to recognize him. He was down on his knees, shaking. He looked so small, so weak. That couldn’t be Daddy, could it? What was that he was leaning over? It looked like … No, it couldn’t be.…
…
No.
…
No. No, that couldn’t be her. It had none of her vibrancy, her energy, her warmth. It was just …
…
Emerald couldn’t understand what she was looking at. It looked like Mommy … but it couldn’t be … couldn’t be a person … It looked like Mommy’s face … but only half of it was there.… There was a hole and she could see a fire behind.…
Where was Mommy?
Why wasn’t Daddy looking for Mommy? How could he just kneel there, bawling like a little baby over this … that … mound of … that thing .…
Why wasn’t he stopping the bad guys? Why didn’t he stop them from breaking things, and … and that .…
Something knocked her forward, a sound she almost heard over the rushing in her head, and she fell and rolled and that wasn’t in front of her anymore and there was a metal monster pointing something at her, yelling something … and Daddy just bawled … and Emry closed her eyes.…
And then she woke up and strong arms picked her up—Daddy? But no, they were hard and cold and they whirred. She looked and it was the Troubleshooter. His helmet was retracting, folding back behind like origami, and there was a kind face behind it, craggy with a bushy moustache. “You’re safe now, little one,” he said. “Uncle Arkady has caught the bad guys. It will be all right now.” He looked past
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