This is a fan translation of Shadows of Dreams (Тени снов) by the Russian science fiction and fantasy author Sergei Lukyanenko. The novella takes place in the same setting as Lukyanenko's Line of Dreams (Линия грёз) and Emperors of Illusions (Императоры иллюзий) novels and can be considered a fan fiction of the original Master of Orion game.

Note: Footnotes are located at the end of the chapter.

Chapter 2

Leaders and Underdogs

I'd been to space once. Our community had a small, old yacht, converted from some Vague War-era warship. They said it could even make it to the nearest inhabited world.

I'd been ten then… just after I refused to go to Terra. Maybe that was why my uncle had taken me aboard, to keep me from being sad. It was a suborbital flight, we had to test the yacht once every few years. I didn't remember much, felt very nauseous, first from the g-forces and then from the freefall. But I still had something to be proud of, since few of my peers had flown anything…

But now, when Ogarin and I stopped in front of the yacht―matte blue, glossy, as if it hadn't just torn its way through the atmosphere―I was once again struck by how ridiculous my pride had been…

The hatch was open, a small ladder was coming down to the spaceport's surface. A girl about ten years of age was standing on the last step and holding a gun.

An ordinary girl. Cute face, blonde curls. He was wearing denim coveralls with straps on her chest and some interesting applique on a pocket. The light falling on her looked strange, causing her to look like she was surrounded by a glimmering cloud. If one removed the gun and added a pair of wings, she'd look like an angel on a Christmas card.

"Stop," the girl said. "Identification."

Her voice was surprisingly hoarse, and her tone was more than convincing.

"Captain Denis Ogarin, Imperial Armed Forces," my friend didn't seem surprised. "Assigned as the spaceport's commandant."

"Identification."

Denis slowly took out his ID, opened it, and showed it to her without moving. What could she possibly make out in this gloom from ten meters away?..

"Promoted yesterday?" the girl asked after glancing at the ID.

"Yes."

"Why yesterday?"

"You know, kid, I've been asking myself for five years, 'Why am I a lieutenant?'" Ogarin replied. He said it in a friendly manner, but there was steel in his voice… "And yesterday I finally got promoted to captain. Are we done with the formalities?"

The girl said nothing.

"First lower the shield," Denis said. "Then I want to hear your report. Who is in command of the ship?"

"I am," the girl tapped her pocket. The painted fox stopped glowing. The glimmer around the girl faded as well. "Anne Eiko, co-pilot of the Rickshaw-class cruising yacht Paladin. Acting ship commander."

"What happened to Anastasis Eiko?" Ogarin clearly knew more about the yacht than what he'd told me.

"An accident," the girl glanced quickly at the lit opening of the hatch. "He forgot to check the residual battery charge when disassembling his standard-issue blaster."

"I see. I assume all the evidence of the accident has been collected?"

"Yes," there was amusement in the girl's voice. "You can conduct an investigation if you wish."

Ogarin walked up to her, held up her chin, and peered into her eyes. I thought the girl looked tense.

"You're holding up very well. Can I ask, off the record, where you got your training?"

"Daughters of Kali School," the girl replied after a moment's hesitation.

I didn't understand, but the Captain looked like he did…

"I see… And you can talk about your father's death so calmly?"

"He has aTan," the girl noted with contempt.

That got to me! Many in our community believed that aTan was nothing but a myth or a scam. Ogarin had told me that immortality did exist but cost a fortune. So we could easily forget about it. This aTan luxury wasn't for our poor frontier world.

"What about you?" Ogarin inquired.

"Would you like to know the details about my sex life too?" the girl asked. Her face remained serious, and I suddenly realized that the kid really could have this sort of "details".

"My apologies," Ogarin changed his tone. "The quarantine team is about to arrive, you can give the official report to the person in charge."

"What about you?"

"I don't like to read prepared papers," Ogarin took the extinguished pipe from his mouth and looked at it in annoyance. "Do you need refueling?"

"No. The Paladin uses Alkari tech, so we can finish the regatta on a single reactor fueling."

"That's good. Our supplies are limited, and there are other yachts following yours. I doubt all of them are using such sophisticated technology."

He was speaking with the girl in a very serious manner. I thought Ogarin had changed his tone of voice as soon as she mentioned the Daughters of Kali School. I'd have to remember to ask him what it meant.

"I listed all our requests when I asked for permission to land," the girl flicked a blonde curl off her forehead and sighed. "Will any of that work?"

"Possibly."

"I'd be very grateful, Captain."

"It's my duty towards any citizen of the Empire," the slight dry note seemed to say, "Don't even think about trying to offer me a bribe."

The girl nodded.

"What will you do with the body?" Ogarin asked.

"Unload it. Our fridge isn't large. Will you be able to bury Anastasis at a local cemetery?"

"Probably. This is an Orthodox community… but they're pretty tolerant toward other beliefs. Does it bother you that the body will be laid to rest far from Terra?"

"It's just the remains," the girl said contemptuously. "What else should I do with him? One second…"

She quickly ran up the ladder and disappeared in the ship; the entrance was immediately covered by a cloudy haze.

"A nice yacht," Ogarin said. "If I live for five hundred years without a lot of expenses, I'll definitely buy one."

"It'll be cheap crap in five hundred years," I noted.

"Yep," the Captain agreed, lighting up the pipe. "It'll get cheap enough for me to afford it…"

"A regatta is expensive entertainment," I chanced noting.

"That's a very wise thing to say, Alexey… very wise."

I realized he was mocking me again and fell silent.

"Quit pouting," Ogarin remarked. "Do you know what the Daughters of Kali School is?"

"No."

"An elite school for girls. Located on Terra, somewhere in the Himalayas… they're mountains, tall ones… People give their daughters there at the age of about six months and get them back at ten."

"Why give them up so early?" I asked in surprise. I was no longer offended.

"They undergo a series of augmentation surgeries, a very lengthy process… Their genes aren't affected, like it is for Supers, can't be inherited, which is why it's not banned. Plus a very peculiar education… a very versatile one. The result…"

Ogarin broke off.

"The result is these cute girls. They're returned to their parents, who no longer have to worry about bodyguards."

"They're trained to protect?"

"They're trained to kill. This girl can cut down our entire garrison… with a certain measure of luck. No emotional weakness, no hesitation ― she's not empathetic to other people's pain. At the same time, her attachment to her parents and family members is monstrous, at the level of reflexes. The world is clearly divided into 'us' and 'them'. Their reaction speed is far above human, their combat training is way above what any military school provides. Primarily hand-to-hand combat, terror, psyche suppression… Such girls are very expensive, Alexey. It's an investment, a very profitable one."

"She should be playing with dolls!" I protested. True, on our planet early marriage was acceptable, at the age of thirteen or fourteen, but the girl was only ten!

"She can pretend to play with dolls," Ogarin replied calmly. "She'll be very convincing, you won't notice anything wrong until you find the doll's ripped-off arm stuck in your throat. It's a very interesting school. They took us there for a dance once. Even we… we didn't like what we saw."

"You're lying," I blurted out. "I don't believe it."

"I've played jokes on you," Ogarin said. "But not like this. The Emperor tried to have Daughters of Kali shut down once, but they applied pressure… They settled for adding loyalty to the Emperor and the human race to the curriculum."

I stared at the yacht, trying to put together what I'd heard and the curly-haired girl in coveralls.

"What if she hears you?"

"And? They know perfectly well what's been done to them. A different question would be how they feel about it."

"I don't believe you," I repeated stubbornly.

"As you wish."

Ogarin produced a cloud of aromatic smoke and sighed, "The universe is big, Alexey. Incredibly big, the human mind can't imagine the great variety of inhabited worlds. There are planets where the very concepts of war and violence have been virtually forgotten. They have given up a significant part of their sovereignty in exchange for prosperity under the wing of the Imperial forces. There are small colonies like yours, where the remoteness from civilization and the low population result in a pastoral existence. But most worlds are filled with aggression to various extents."

"Are you still talking about whether I should leave or not?" I realized.

"Of course. I can tell you're moping here, but… Alexey, moping is better than dying."

"I don't have any chance of getting out of here!" I shouted.

"You do," Ogarin bit off. "Now you do."

At that moment, two small silhouettes appeared from out of the yacht's hatch, dragging something long and wrapped in shimmering synthetic fabric. The girl was walking first, backwards, dragging her load without any particular effort… it wasn't difficult to guess what that load was.

A boy slightly older than her was walking second. Dark-haired, thin, with big wary eyes. Unlike the girl, he was wearing a piloting suit, which was clearly tailored to his size. In total silence, the children climbed down the latter and placed the body wrapped in fabric onto the slabs.

"Artem Eiko?" Ogarin asked.

The boy nodded.

"What's in the sack?"

"Anastasis Eiko, the ship's former captain," the boy replied as calmly as his sister. He spoke very quietly, staring at his feet. Either he was shy, or he was worried a lot more than his sister.

"Cause of death?"

"Careless handling of a weapon," the boy lifted his head and squinted slightly. The girl chuckled.

"Anne, forgive me, but I am required to follow the formalities," Ogarin said dryly. "You should be happy I have reduced them to a minimum."

The girl immediately grew serious.

"Yes, Commandant. Of course. When can we continue on our way?"

"As soon as you find someone willing to take part in the regatta," Ogarin chuckled. "If I understand the rules correctly, a crew has to be made up of three people."

His smile was growing wider and wider, he was clearly enjoying the situation.

"Yes…" the girl furrowed her brow.

"The problem is that this is a small patriarchal world," Denis spread his hands. "Finding someone willing to cross half the galaxy here is difficult enough. But to get them to agree to fly under the command of a ten-year-old killer…"

Anne jerked, "Captain, you forget yourself!"

"Not at all. My responsibilities include ensuring the safety of this colony and its citizens. Therefore, I feel it necessary to warn the colonists about your crew."

"I don't insist on commanding the ship!" the girl spat out. The speed with which she was making decisions was indeed incredible for a child. "Let someone else be in command! Artem and I are prepared to fly as passengers. Right?"

Artem nodded obediently. In this pair, he wasn't in charge, even though he was older and a boy.

"Kid, I repeat, this is a quiet patriarchal world…" Denis glanced at me. "No one here knows how to operate ships like this. And few want to leave here. Except maybe Alexey here…"

Finally I was given attention. And how!

A moment later, Anne Eiko was almost hanging off me, embracing me and staring into my eyes. Tears were quivering on her eyelashes.

"Help us! Please! Daddy put everything we had into this ship, trying to win the regatta! And we will win, we have the best ship, no one can catch us, honest! Artem and I can do everything by ourselves, we can pilot. You'll just go with us, okay? We'll give you a quarter of the prize!"

"That's a lot of money," Denis agreed. "A huge amount. Enough for a yacht like this, aTan, and you'd still have something left over."

"Please!" the girl pleaded. "Please, please!"

A moment before, she'd been cool, reserved, and self-confident. And now she was an ordinary child, hopping in place impatiently, with cheeks wet from the tears.

"Will you fly with us?" the girl asked.

I glanced at Ogarin.

I always seemed to have the worst kind of luck. I seemed to grab it by the tail, and usually where nothing could be expected. But then it turned out to be a bummer.

"I haven't lost my mind yet," I said, carefully removing the girl's hands from me. It was a strange sensation, as if she was allowing me to unhook herself rather than yielding to my strength. "Sorry, little girl, but I'm not going with you."

Then Captain Denis Ogarin burst out laughing, "Alexey… kid… you're making progress! I was afraid you were going to say yes."

When the quarantine team arrived, Ogarin gave a few brief orders, then we left. The boy once again hid in the ship, while the girl was making arrangements for her father's funeral.

"Are we going to greet the other ships?" I asked.

Denis shrugged, "Don't know. It's unlikely to be as entertaining. The Paladin was in the lead, when she changed course and came to your planet, the others followed. They'll take the opportunity to refuel and rest; the regatta has been going on for a month now. Someone probably decided to forego the rest and is continuing the race."

"Will they be removed from the race?"

"These cute kids? Yeah, probably. Imperial laws allow children to operate spaceships. But an adult has to be aboard. Honestly, I shouldn't even allow them to leave if they decide to take off with just the two of them on board."

"You should have said so."

"I should have. But I don't want any unpleasantness during my last days here."

"What unpleasantness?"

Denis threw a sideways glance at me, "Alexey, I wasn't kidding when I was talking about the girl's combat capabilities. What if she has orders to continue the race at any cost? She won't hesitate. We're not people to her. You know, I'd prefer to sacrifice my principles a little to keep my guys alive… and your people too. Let them leave. And if they find a volunteer to go with them, I won't object."

He stopped, lighting up the fading pipe. Yeah, right, a true space dog…

"But I am glad that you decided not to go with them."

"Thanks, Denis," I suddenly felt warm from his praise. "But I'm not a complete moron. To join the crew of an autistic boy and a psychotic girl… Wouldn't get far."

"I have no doubt about her ability to fly the yacht," Denis replied. "I doubt her ability to coexist with others in a confined space. Obviously, her brother fits her concept of "friend". But any other person… Alexey, if you'd have gone with them and then reached for a butter knife a little too quickly at the dinner table, you'd have ended up with a fork in your eye." He chuckled, "And on the next planet they'd unload you in nylon sack, the victim of a careless use of a utensil…"

I froze, catching my breath from the frightening thought.

"You… are you trying to say… their father?.."

"No," Denis said flatly. "I'm not. The Daughters of Kali never disobey. She's incapable of killing her own. Maybe if her priorities are in conflict… no…"

He hit the pipe on his phone several times, shaking out the ashes, and grunted, "You've confused me. Alexey, there will be an investigation into the death. And there isn't even a death at all! Anastasis has aTan! Don't mess up my last days on your planet. All these yachts on my head… and now that desk jockey is on his way too…"

"No messing up your days, yes, sir…"

"What? Oh… forget it. Consider yourself demobilized. I only dragged you to the yacht so that you could make your choice. Honestly, I didn't realize things were so serious, I thought you'd just gotten the chance to leave the planet."

"Thanks, Denis."

"Don't mention it. Going home? Or will you walk around with me? I still need to greet the courier."

I thought about it.

"Do you need help?"

"No."

"Then I'm going home. I want to go to bed."

"Good luck," Denis said after a pause.

"Uh-huh. Can I stop by tomorrow? Will you tell me what's going on?"

"As long as it's not a first-degree state secret," Denis chuckled. "Good night…"

It was easy to talk about going to sleep. I was a lot harder to come and fall asleep if dawn was close, the previous day had more going on than some years, and the empty house was deathly quiet…

I had an ordinary house, wooden, two-story, good for a big family but not for a single person. The entire second floor was empty, I lived on the first floor in my old room. The only change was the normal-sized bed, which I'd dragged from another room.

By the time I realized I wouldn't get to sleep, it had already gotten bright enough to see everything. A model of an Imperial destroyer was hanging of the lamp, which had burnt out long ago―I didn't like ceiling lights. I'd glued it myself when I was ten, following the plans in the Imperial Falcon children's magazine. But the painting on the wall had been done by my mother. She'd had no drawing talent, and if I had any artistic ability, it hadn't come from her. All of the painting were somewhere in the attic. But I hadn't removed this one, even though I once counted up seven just factual inaccuracies. There was no way Emperor Gray could have been wearing a Viking combat suit, as they hadn't been invented yet, and it was ridiculous to portray him at the backdrop of a burning Alkari rookery, he'd never been there, and the Emperor would never be affectionately pressing a newly-hatched Alkari chick, rescued from the fire, to his chest. Alkari weren't chickens, they had a genetic memory, and even the smallest chick could tell a friend from foe. All it would take for humanity to lose its leader was for it to thrust its beak into the Emperor's open helmet… Well, and plenty of other, more minor inaccuracies…

Everything here was familiar, I could find anything with my eyes closed or even go to the bathroom without waking up, I even tossed books onto the desk without looking, knowing that they would fall onto the only free spot. In our community, it was believed that this was how people ought to live, preserving the continuity of generations, their spirit, nationality, and moral values. This had been my father's room. Right there, on a shelf in the cabinet stood the plastic model of a combat robot. He'd put that together. And before him my grandfather had lived here. The window sill was made from a wooden board, which Grandpa had decorated with pokerwork, portraying the huge city our settlement would someday grow into. The chain. Continuity. Remember the deeds of your ancestors and pass them on to your descendants. Our chief covenant.

I thought so too, of course. Just not about myself. I didn't want to! I just didn't want to! I could just imagine… I'd have kids, my oldest son would live in this room, knowing that the pokerwork had come from his great-grandfather, the robot from his grandfather, and the destroyer model from his father… And when he built something worthy of the family spirit, there would be a place for it, on a shelf or on a nail.

When I finally realized I definitely wouldn't fall asleep, I lowered my feet from the bed, switched on the coffeemaker without looking, and sat with my eyes closed for a little while, listening to the quiet bubbling of the coffee. I was suddenly curious whether the Eiko family had left the planet.

Yes, of course I wanted to. I really wanted to grab this opportunity by the tail. Whether they won the regatta or not, I still wouldn't have to return home. I could get a job somewhere, I'd aced the mandatory Imperial education program after all, I could enlist in the military or become a spaceport technician. Either one would work. But there had to have been a reason why Denis, who was always scolding me for my indecisiveness, had approved of my refusal. I remembered the girl's eyes… they were scary. Not because there was anger in them or a desire to kill. They just changed far too easily, becoming attentive, serious, or naïve and pleading. One should never believe people whose eye changed so quickly. Ever.

The coffeemaker played the wake-up tune, I reached out and grabbed a cup of coffee. I inhaled the aroma. Not great, of course… I had a bag of real Terran coffee somewhere, our version had nothing on it. Aunt Lisa and Uncle Pavel did their best trying to grow it, order special fertilizers, but the coffee was still wrong.

Then again, how did I know that ours was the wrong one? If I thought about it, it was the Terran coffee that I was supposed to see as wrong, since I'd only had it less than a dozen times in my life and drank ours constantly. And yet I did feel it. As if somewhere deep in my cells, like with the Alkari, there was a memory that whispered to me, "not like this", "wrong", or "fake"… Father Vitaly said that it was a remnant, that even though Terra was humanity's homeworld, one couldn't live in the cradle forever. Therefore, this sky had to be our native one, as had to be the soil, the brainless Abori, the jungle… and this coffee.

I drank two cups, then took a shower, and changed into clean clothes. Then I suddenly decided to clean up, even though I usually did that on Fridays and it was only Thursday. I probably just wanted something to do. The floor was vacuumed and mopped by my old turtle robot, it kept acting up, but if I started it in general cleaning mode twice in a row, it got the job done. Meanwhile, I was dusting, paying particular attention to Grandpa's window sill, as dirt constantly got into the grooves, causing the city to become dusty and unreal, like the models in our museum, then wiped the window panes; I did have a small robot for cleaning windows, but it was too much of a hassle to keep moving it from one pane to another, it was a lot easier to do the job yourself with a rag and a spray bottle.

It would be great if the racers had already refueled, rested, and left…

It would be even better if the military courier were to take Ogarin with him. I didn't want to say goodbye to him. It was a lot simpler to show up at the bunker and pick up an envelope with a note, which he'd definitely leave. I'd read it… then go to the priest to ask for his blessing for a marriage with Nonova…

It took me until noon to clean and wash the entire first floor. I did everything I could, even shampooed the rug in the living room and washed and dried the family crystal in the cupboard. Only then did I realize that I was deliberately coming up with tasks for myself just to avoid leaving the house.

Was I really afraid that I was going to change my mind and ask to join that crazy girl's crew?

No way!

It was very quiet outside, and I had a suspicion that everything was indeed over: the racers had departed, and no one had learned about the unexpected arrival but me…

But when I walked up to the inn, I realized that things weren't over by a long shot.

Two strangers stood by the entrance, tall, slender, excessively fragile, probably from a low-gravity planet. Their faces were thin, translucent, inhuman… making them look like elves from children's fairy tales. When I came close, I realized that one of them was female, barely able to discern her breasts under her jumpsuit and noticing her wider hips.

"Good day to you," the pair greeted me in unison and smiled. But they made no further attempts at communicating, either waiting for someone else or maybe trying to greet everyone in town.

"Good day," I whispered, slipping past them.

Then I saw what was happening inside.

There were six more off-worlders here. It wasn't difficult to split them up into two trios, one crew looked almost like our people, only dressed in dark clothes, with strange hairstyles, long locks of hair over their ears, and small round caps seemingly glued to their heads. These three were sitting on bar stools by the counter and drinking wine, from their own bottle, for some reason, I'd never seen one like that before. Maybe their metabolism was different from ours, or maybe their customs did not allow them to drink other people's wine.

The second group was a lot more interesting. At first, I assumed it was also a crew of children, but then I realized that they were adults, just very short and fragile ones, with bluish skin and blonde, almost white hair. I tried to figure out what environment resulted in such an appearance, but nothing intelligent came to mind. A high-gravity world would have made them stocky. A low-gravity world would have made them tall and thin. These people were like adolescents, only their eyes were those of adults, wary and serious, and they were chugging vodka without pause.

Meanwhile, our people seemed to have gone crazy…

Everyone was wearing their best outfit. They'd taken out their holiday clothes and even looked through their grandparents' boxes. Everyone was wearing important and even expressions, as if such a pilgrimage of off-worlders was an everyday occurrence here, and not tourists, who only had fun under the protection of ship's cannons and only went into town with guards, our kind of people. Everyone chatted about intelligent things like internal politics, relations with aliens, scientific achievements, prospects of internal development, the premiere of the movie Atlantis with a selection of ten storylines: where the Atlantis was destroyed, where she arrived to Endoria safely, where McWilliam was accused of stealing Imperial treasures, where he was acquitted, where he died from a lack of oxygen, and where he survived by taking his lover's spare tank…

It was awful!

No, I understood them, I also wanted to show off to the visiting celebrities the news channels talked about every day. And had I come earlier, I might have also been standing right now with the infantile astronauts, arguing loudly with Roman Choi about what was better: two overclocked reajax drives or a single interphased drive with a quark pump…

It had to be funny for the off-worlders to listen to us…

Or maybe not. Maybe they didn't care, which was even worse.

I shook Roman's hand, and we exchanged embarrassed glances.

"Don't be offended," Choi whispered.

"It's fine, forget it," I replied just as quietly.

We exchanged smiles, and I made my way to the counter. Grigory glanced at me, looking wound up and weary, even his smile was no longer genuine, despite all his experience.

"Drink? Beer?" he asked quickly.

"Whatever… how about vodka?"

Uncle Grigory gave me a disapproving look but poured a glass anyway, also giving me the appropriate snack. I moved to the side, deliberately standing in such a way as to avoid talking to anyone. I was playing with the glass in my hand, observing the unnaturally loud bar. I wondered where the Eiko family was.

Then I saw them. Of course, why would they go drinking? They were having fun beyond the glass wall, in the pool. The boy Artem was just then standing on a diving board, preparing to jump. Our kids were standing motionless next to him. Below, wearing a bright swimsuit, stood Anne Eiko, surrounded by girls as much as her brother was surrounded by boys. They looked very peaceful, and I recalled my last night's fear with some embarrassment.

"Alexey…"

I turned. Father Vitaly was standing behind me. Also holding a glass and a pickle.

"Have you heard anything about these poor children?"

"Well… I was told by Captain… Ogarin…"

"Yes, he's told everyone," Father Vitaly sighed. "They've already announced they were looking for a third crewmember. That is why I have come to you, Alexey."

"I know everything. The girl is a killer."

The priest crossed himself.

"That is not the sin, many in our imperfect world must hold weapons. Who would blame a man for honestly working as a bodyguard or a hired gun? I'm troubled by something else, Alexey. I've spoken with the girl, and she utterly lacks the concept of sin…"

I nodded just in case.

"I know you're filled with dreams of leaving our community…" Father Vitaly said with slight reproach. I lowered my eyes and nodded. "It's not a sin," the priest said firmly. "I will bless you on your way myself, if the fate wills it. Just, not with them! All right?"

"All right," but I couldn't stop myself from asking, "But why not with them? Is it dangerous for me?"

"Of course," Father Vitaly shook his head reproachfully. "Don't you understand? You're unfamiliar with the turbulent human world of the Empire. To start your path in such a company…"

He sighed then downed his drink. He grunted and chased it with the pickle.

"Don't even think about it!" he added admonishingly. "Okay?"

Then he stepped away, severely embarrassing me. The entire community was worried about me… I threw another glance at the pool, but the girl wasn't there anymore. Only her brother was telling our kids something.

Where had she gone?

At that moment, the inn door opened, and Anne Eiko entered. She'd thrown a robe over her swimsuit. She nodded a greeting to the off-worlders in dark clothing but didn't even dignify the infantile ones with a glance. She walked up to the counter and told Uncle Grigory, "Kvass [Footnote 1] and vodka, double."

Uncle grimaced, "We don't give alcohol to children."

"I have Kulthos citizenship and full adult rights."

With a disapproving expression, Uncle mixed two fingers of his best vodka with dark fizzy kvass in a tall glass, tossed in an ice cube and a pickle slice, then inserted a thin straw.

Anne took out a handful of coins from her robe's pocket and paid for the drink. She climbed onto a swivel stool and looked around the inn. I noted that everyone was looking away.

"Yes, I have the rights of an adult," Anne said quietly. She sipped the beverage through the straw. "Yes, I went to a special school. I can kill. But so can many other people. Even among you, right?"

No one answered.

"So why doesn't anyone want to fly with us?" the girl exclaimed. "It's completely safe, you have my word! Artem and I can fly the yacht. We have every chance of winning!"

The racers in dark clothing were unperturbed. But the ones that looked like adolescents smiled. Clearly, they were also of a high opinion about their own chances.

"Even if we don't win," the girl took another sip. "Doesn't anyone here want to travel? To see other worlds? Then come back if you don't like any other place… On my word of honor, we'll bring back whomever comes with us!"

Father Vitaly looked at his silent flock, sighed, and started walking toward the girl.

"Would you like to offer your services?" Anne inquired with an innocent expression. But I suddenly thought that there was dull anguish hiding behind her tone of voice.

"Dear girl," our priest spoke in a well-trained voice. "I only wish to explain why no one here will be able to help you."

"Why is that?"

"We have a quiet and peaceful planet," Father Vitaly said. "We're Christians, Orthodox. Even within the framework of the Church of the Unified Will, we're a little special… do you understand?"

"Not entirely," the girl rapped out.

"You have to look far back into history, my dear," the priest shook his head. "Our people have lived through much. They have been killing themselves for a long time. Three hundred years ago, we even lost our own country… and didn't even notice it. We forgot our roots, we lost our faith. Our entire rebirth was connected to faith. Not just to faith, but to the faith of our fathers, grandfathers, to keeping with traditions, to rejecting violence…"

"I know history," Anne shook her wet hair. She removed the straw from the drink and took a swig. "Get to the point, padre."

"Girl, there are no cowards among us," Father Vitaly said quietly. "And no one is afraid of going with you, even if you are the perfect killer Captain Ogarin says you are. And helping our neighbor and helping the weak is our duty…"

"What then?"

Either she was intoxicated from the sizable portion of alcohol for her age and build or she was upset.

"Dear child," Father Vitaly continued in the same gentle voice. "Your existence is a direct challenge to our customs and traditions. In our society, little girls don't know how to kill. That's why being near you means harming ourselves rather than helping you. Do you understand?"

"Are you squeamish?" the girl asked sharply.

"We are in sorrow," Father Vitaly bowed his head. "I'm sorry, but you won't find a companion here."

"Your children are a lot smarter than you," the girl narrowed her eyes.

"Even if one of them decides to go with you out of youth and naiveté," there were now firm notes in Vitaly's voice, "we will not let them go. This isn't Kulthos. Adulthood starts at sixteen. And none of the adults will go with you."

The girl thought for a moment, then glanced at Grigory, "You're the only one here to have served in the Imperial Forces, you've fought and seen the universe," she said. Anne was a quick one… "You've not a young man, but don't you want to see other worlds again? And make enough money… for rejuvenation, maybe even for aTan!"

Maybe Father Vasily was afraid of Kononov's answer. I wasn't. I knew my uncle well.

"I've seen and fought," Grigory leaned over the counter and looked Anne in the eye. "That's why I came back. And that's why I won't go with you. God willing, I'll make enough money for rejuvenation here. I don't need aTan. This is a quiet world."

Anne seemed to wither. She'd probably been still hoping to find a companion… She finished her cocktail, grimaced, and set the glass with the pickle slice aside. She looked at me and muttered, "This kvass and vodka of yours is awful…"

"Of course it is," Kononov said. "Haven't you noticed that no one else was drinking it?"

"It is awful," Father Vitaly confirmed with a sigh. "Only for tourists."

These two were incredible! The innkeeper and the priest, they were the true soul of our community, not the council of elders or the mayor. Moments before, a strange, dangerous girl had been sitting in front of our citizens, either requesting or demanding something unclear. Now she was an ordinary foolish tourist, who was also young and with attitude… Everyone immediately started smiling condescendingly but with kindness. Roman Choi, while walking up to Grigory for a refill, even patted her wet head. Anne jerked, but it looked pitiful and funny. A child pretending to be an adult…

The infantile blue-skinned off-worlders clinked their glasses loudly. The other crew started a lively conversation in a strange dialect.

They were probably discussing their changing odds for a victory.

Anne hopped down from the stool and went to the door to the sports complex. Maybe to change or to tell her brother about the failure. Everyone was giving her a wide berth, as if afraid to touch her by accident…

At that moment, the outer door opened, and Ogarin entered the inn. His face was haggard, as if he hadn't slept the whole night, and extremely tense.

"Captain, it's all your fault!" the girl shouted loudly and angrily. "You've spread the information about me and ruined our flight! You're going to pay for that!"

Denis barely even glanced at her, "Calm down. This is utterly unimportant."

"Unimportant?" the girl dashed to him, and I suddenly remembered that she could kill with her bare hands. "Unimportant?"

Ogarin didn't move. For a moment, their eyes met in a brief confrontation, and the girl stopped.

"Unimportant," the Captain repeated. "I'm authorized to inform all the regatta participants that the race is on hold."

The blue-skinned people jumped to their feet. I didn't notice how, but short daggers suddenly glinted in their thin childlike hands. The ones in dark clothing were more reserved. After exchanging glances, one of the trio asked, "For what reason, Captain?"

"Lieutenant Torachi will explain everything," Denis stepped away from the door, and a soldier I'd never seen before entered.

Footnotes

1) Kvass is a fermented Slavic drink usually made from rye bread. It's classified as non-alcoholic by most countries that consume it due to its low alcohol content (1-2 proof) (translator's comment).