Nyx feels a pat on her head. She doesn’t have to look to know it’s Cai, and she has too much on her mind to care. In fact, it calms her rather than irritates her.

  She’d just placed Oyx in the recycler herself and set it to incinerate. Her friend’s body would be nothing but ash, the rest collected by the recycler for reuse. Used to create new things.

  “I’m having the recycler collect everything.” Cai says, “I’m thinking we can use the ashes to make soil. I’m sure the Donati’s database has methods we can use. I… I have a place we can put it. Maybe plant a memorial tree or make a flower bed to remember them?”

  Nyx looks at Cai. She’s not sure what soil is, but his idea sounds beautiful, “I’d be lovin’ that.”

  Cai motions for her to follow, “Come on. The drones can finish this. I’m more worried about you. I can only imagine how you’re feeling right now.”

  Nyx gets the gist of what he’s saying, “Goddum it, Cai! Why?”

  She hits his legs with her fists. It’s not very hard, and he lets her do it. Tears stream down her face again.

  Cai hugs her, “Nyx. Human history is filled with evil people and evil acts. We’re selfish. Some of us try to fight that, but others embrace it. I’m sure they just saw you as tools. Genetic testing tools for some greater purpose. And you’re Felis, so not human. I’m sure some of them couldn’t bring themselves to use humans as mere test subjects, and Felis are already changed from humans, so why not more?”

  “Cai, I’m gonna sparkin’ murder ‘em.”

  Cai holds her head as he continues to hug her, “Yeah. Let’s find them. I can only think about how many others’ lives they’re playing with. This is the reason why this stuff was illegal. Too many babies and children getting birth defects or worse. Too many babies ‘disposed of’ when they’re not needed anymore.”

  He moves away, “Anyway. I have a perfect place for you to gather your thoughts.”

  He takes her gloved hand, and she feels nervous.

  Where is he taking her?

  They leave the machine deck and head to the bedroom deck and into her room.

  He opens a drawer at the desk and pulls out a ring with several pieces of metal on the inner part, “Put this on. It’s a full dive virtual reality headset. With this, we can go to anyplace we can think of if the computer can make it. You can also be other people, but it causes dysphoria if you do it too much, so be careful.”

  Nyx takes it. She’s not sure what it is, but she trusts Cai.

  …

  She trusts him. When did she start trusting him?

  She recalls his face as he took in the nursery. The rage and anger. It seemed so genuine. So terrifying. But that anger. It was for her and her siblings. Not because of her.

  And he swore. He’d never heard him swear seriously and only to tease her. He was always so calm and polite, and that was the first time she felt she’d seen him express genuine emotion.

  She trusts him.

  He’d never do anything to harm her.

  She wants to trust him.

  She realized she’s needed someone to trust for a long time. Someone to feel safe around. Not even Wrench could do that for her. Not when he was powerless to stop the captain and other pirates.

  “Okay.”

  She places it on her head.

  Cai nods, “I’ll be in my room using mine. Once we’re in, you won’t be able to tell we’re in different rooms because…” There’s a glint in his eye, “Well, you’ll see. Just don’t panic when you wake up inside.”

  Nyx growls at him, “I won’t sparkin’ be panicin’!” She then pauses. She doesn’t want him to go into the other room. The thought of being alone makes her nervous. The only time she’s usually alone is when she’s on a mission or when she hid in the maintenance tunnels of the Gaper. “Can ya be comin’ in here?”

  He nods, “Let’s do it in my room.” He Cai leaves, then enters his room, and Nyx follows him inside, “You can take the chair, it has restraints so you don’t float away while you’re in full dive. I’ll take my bed.”

  Nyx sits on his chair and straps herself in while he gets out his own headset and straps himself in his sling.

  “Okay, just close your eyes. You’ll feel a rush as the crown connects to your brain, then you’ll wake up on a boat.” He pushes a button on his wrist computer, “Donati, start simulation ‘Mountain Lake’ and place us in the cabin of a mid-sized yacht near the center of the lake.” He looks at her, “Give Nyx a white sundress with a straw hat. Give me… swim shorts and a Hawaiian shirt. Start when Nyx says ‘ready’.”

  The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.

  Nyx has many questions, “Goddum it, Cai… Ready.”

  Nyx’s head swims, and her sight fades.

  When it returns, she finds herself pressed down into a soft chair as if the Donati were under engine power.

  She’s sitting in a room perhaps as large as a bedroom and its adjoining bathroom in the Donati, and looks around. It’s strange. So many things not bolted or strapped down that would float away in zero gravity. There’s a small kitchen much like the one on the Donati, its counter in the shape of a ‘U.’ There are stools, this strange chair she’s sitting on that’s abnormally wide, and a table. On the wall is a display screen that’s off. There are pieces of cloth with bright light coming from behind them.

  Next to her is Cai, and she sees he’s wearing shorts and a strange shirt in the pattern of some colorful plant.

  She can see his muscles and gulps before turning away and blushing.

  She notices herself. She’s wearing a strange helmet that has a wide brim and is made of… plants? Then she notices her clothing. She’s wearing a dress of pure white, and she blushes again as she notices it doesn’t hide her curves, or the lack of them, “Dum it, Cai! What the spark did ya be putin’ me in!?”

  She notes her arms still have her scars.

  Cai notices her looking at them, “It’s a sundress. I thought you might like to try on something feminine. I can change your clothes if you want. And… I can get rid of the scars, but I thought I should leave them alone unless you want them gone.”

  Nyx actually likes the dress, “It’ll be a sparkin’ pain if ya change my things.” She looks at her scars and remembers Cai offered to make a cream that could heal them, “Maybe be gettin’ rid of the scars…”

  Cai nods, “Okay. Donati. Remove the scars from Nyx’s avatar.”

  And like that, they disappear, and it’s like a part of her trapped on the Az Gaper disappeared with them, “Can ya get me that sparkin’ cream to be gettin’ rid o’ them?”

  Cai nods, “Already in the queue just in case.” He stands up, “Now, how about I show you what Earth looks like? Or at least a place based on Earth.”

  He moves to one of the cloth covered lights and moves the cloth out of the way.

  Nyx’s jaw falls open in awe.

  They weren’t lights; they were windows, and outside she sees they’re on a ship floating on more water than she thought could be possible. Beyond that, she sees plants. More than any she can count.

  She runs to the window and presses her face against it. The plants appear to be on a deck that rises in height in the distance until they rise high above them into…

  She jumps back from the window, “We’re in a goddum big station!? But how’s it bein’ so big!? And why’s it bein’ blue up high?”

  Cai chuckles, “We’re not in space Nyx. I guess you wouldn’t know what it’s like being on a planet since… Anyway. This is modeled after a lake on Earth. Not a real place, but one the computer made for us randomly. The lake is the bowl that’s holding the water. Those plants are trees. And the tall rocks are mountains. And the blue you’re seeing is the sky, and it goes up until it thins out until you’re in space. And no, you won’t suffocate or get pulled into space. The gravity will keep you on the ground, no spinning or thrust needed. Just a large planet making gravity as all large things do.”

  Nyx moves back to the window and presses her face against it. She can’t imagine how the air doesn’t escape, but it’s still here even with no bulkhead to hold it inside. She’d heard stories passed around by the crew and slummers, but they sounded so ridiculous she didn’t believe them.

  Cai steps back, “Come on. Let’s head up the stairs and go outside. And don’t worry, no matter what, you can’t get hurt in this simulation. And even if you could, it wouldn’t happen to your body as this is all in the computer and your mind.”

  He walked past the kitchen and to some raised pieces of flooring that went up to a door. The stairs.

  Nyx follows and takes a deep breath as he opens the door and they step outside.

  It’s giving her vertigo, like when she goes into space. No bulkheads holding her in and keeping her safe. Though unlike space, she has a bulkhead beneath her feet.

  Forest surrounds the lake thing with only what must be a dock for this ship they’re on. The air smells strange. A little like stale water but more… fresh.

  The air moves, and she instinctively looks for a ventilation duct, but remembers they’re not in a ship.

  It’s the most beautiful place she’s ever been, and she loses track of how long she stares, “Mya! Cai! Cai! It’s sparkin shiny!”

  Cai chuckles, “Shiny?”

  He sits in a reclined chair of several on the deck of this… water ship and watches her.

  He has a warm smile that makes her heart flutter. He’s happy for her. She doesn’t know what to make of it. But it makes her happy too, and she forgets about the pain and anger she’s felt since… Since that day. The sadness.

  She feels her ears flatten against her head and her tail lower.

  Cai stands up and pulls her into a hug, patting her head lightly, “Nyx. Nothing you do will bring them back, but we can punish those that did this and make it so no other kids like you and your friends have to go through this kind of thing again. I know you must be blaming yourself, and it’s natural even if you couldn’t have done anything or even would have died with them. I’m sure in heaven they’re watching you, wanting you to be happy. Be happy for them. Live your life for them in a way you can make them proud.”

  Her tears start and cries. It’s been so long, but she misses her friends so much. She misses Wrench. She misses the childhood she never had.

  Cai. How could such an amazing man have found her and pulled her out of those years of hell? Nyx never knew what happiness was. She’d thought it was a day without being yelled at or one where Wrench praised her. But that wasn’t happiness. It was survival.

  Here on this water ship, she found the first glimmer of happiness, and she hated herself for it. Oyx and Tyx, and the others. Why couldn’t they be here too? It felt selfish for her to be happy to have finally found it, and they never would. Could she do as Cai said? Live for them?

  She knew one thing. She wouldn’t be truly happy until those who had wronged her and her siblings were dead.

  Nyx looked at Cai and knew in her heart she could trust him. She needed him. Without him, she couldn’t find the killers.

  A tiny tug of guilt tugged at her. How could she use a man this kind? But she’d seen it in his eyes too. She wasn’t using him. They were partners now. And after they killed the murderers, she would see how things went from there..