Born of Sand (Tales of a Dying Star Book 5) Read online

  "It's not water. It's chemicals. It scours the rust and keeps it from coming back for a while. Be careful not to inhale too much. And don't get any in your eyes, or you'll go blind." And with that dire warning Binny shimmied inside the tube, pulling her own bucket behind her.

  Mira reached into the bucket, smelling the liquid for the first time. As she pulled out the rag from the liquid's depths the fumes burned her nostrils. Mira kept it at arm's length as she began rubbing it over the exterior of the pipe.

  How can a girl so young be so... old? Binny acted like someone who'd seen the horrors of the world and had hardened herself against them. Because she probably has, was the obvious answer. Although she respected and followed Farrow's orders, Mira got the impression that he wasn't Binny's father. And she'd made no mention of a mother.

  Mira suddenly felt very foolish. For the longest time the only thing that mattered was protecting her own daughters. Everything she did and thought about was to that end. She'd had no room for anything else in her focus. With them gone, Mira had a deep, empty hole in her concern. Now that she allowed herself to look around her, see the struggles of everyone else, it became obvious that she wasn't the only one suffering under the Melisao occupation.

  And yet despite that occupation, strength existed. Binny was stronger than Mira. She seemed fine at being alone, while Mira still felt vaguely lost without her daughters. And that tiny girl's strength comforted Mira, reminded her that her own daughters would be fine. They're stronger than they know, she thought as she dipped her rag into the bucket to soak it with more liquid. They'll be just fine, at least until I get there.

  But she still needed to get there, eventually.

  "So what does Farrow or Akonai have planned?" Mira asked when Binny eventually emerged from the turbine interior.

  "We're going to take the planet back. Throw off the Melisao peacekeepers and restore the Praetari monarchy."

  They began cleaning the turbine shell in unison. "If you want to throw off the Melisao, then why is Spider here? Why is a blue-eyed Melisao on your side?"

  "Not all Melisao are bad," Binny explained patiently. "Some want to destroy the empire. They think their Emperor is a false god. They want to worship Mother Saria, like we used to here on Praetar before the occupation. Spider is like that." She added, "He's still a bad person, mind you, but in a different way."

  Mira chewed on that for a while. It didn't make much sense to her.

  "You had daughters?" Binny suddenly asked. "Farrow said you had daughters."

  Mira smiled. "I still do, yes. Ami is four, but Kaela is about your age."

  "You say 'is'. Does that mean they're not dead?"

  That took Mira aback. "Why would you say that?"

  "If they were alive they would be here with you."

  Mira scrubbed at the metal, picking her words carefully. "Sometimes a mother has to do what's best for her girls, even if it seems terrible. Even if it's the hardest thing in the world."

  "You didn't answer my question," Binny pointed out.

  She's so much like my Ami, smart and stubborn. "I sent them away. I found a way for them to leave the planet, to escape to a better place. I wanted to go with them, but there was no way."

  "Farrow says there's no way off the planet. Anyone who tries to escape is killed, except for Akonai."

  Farrow doesn't want to get her hopes up, Mira realized. Hope could be a dangerous thing, she knew. Changing the subject, she said, "How long until your group of rebels attacks the peacekeepers?"

  "We're not rebels. We're Freemen," Binny said. "And I don't know how long. They always talk like the revolution is nearly here. But I've been here two years and it still hasn't happened. I don't think anyone knows. Though with Akonai in the base everyone has seemed more nervous. Anxious."

  "How are you going to defeat the peacekeepers?" Mira asked. "If there's only thirty-some Freemen here, and they have thousands..."

  "We're smarter than them," Binny insisted. "They built electroids and teach them how to fix things and repair. We take them and fit them with weapons. Plus we're salvaging more and more ships from the desert. There was a battle here long ago, and many of the parts are still useable. We'll have an army, soon."

  An army. Mira couldn't decide if the girl was optimistic or if that was a realistic possibility. But if they were successful, if they somehow managed to take back the planet... could the Praetari come and go as they pleased, then? With no need for freighter trips by corrupt men like Bruno?

  Binny dropped her rag into the bucket with a plunk. Okay, that's good enough for now. Time to clean the engineering bay."

  The hum and vibration of machinery slowly disappeared as Binny led her across the base to the wide room they'd seen before, with the messy piles of metal and electronics. Two men crouched among one pile, sifting through the parts. They leaned low, examining each piece carefully. Half the parts looked familiar to Mira, scrap parts from one model of electroid or another. Behind them, on a workbench, an array of half-assembled pieces laid in a row: four arms, one torso, various sizes of legs. At a glance Mira knew half of them were improperly assembled.

  "We sweep in here," Binny said, shoving a broom into Mira's hands. "The sand gets everywhere. It rains down when the ceiling hatch opens for aircraft. It never stops, there's always more!"

  Mira eyed the hatch in the ceiling, round and split down the middle with a seam. The hangar doors were all closed now. She wondered if Farrow had told the truth about them.

  "Sweep it as best as you can into piles, which we'll clean after," Binny instructed. She bent her head to the task, moving the too-tall-for-her broom with both hands.

  Mira copied as best she could, brushing the sand across the floor. It was slow work because every time the pile of electroid parts shifted it kicked up fresh sand, dirtying the part of the floor she'd already swept. But it was mindless work, and Mira allowed her thoughts to drift to her daughters.

  Some time later the two engineers began arguing. Binny kept her head down, but Mira tried listening in. They gestured wildly at one another, speaking in low tones. Eventually one of them tossed an electroid arm across the workbench and they both left the room, arguing.

  "They do that a lot," Binny said. "They're not very smart, not when it comes to machinery. They can't even repair the turbine."

  Mira eyed the workbench while Binny chatted away. One of the electroid legs looked wrong, somehow. But she couldn't be certain from across the room.

  "They left to get supper. We'll get ours when we're done sweeping. I like to go later, when everyone else is done eating. Maggy the cook gives me extra food because I'm a growing girl, but not when the others are around, 'cause they'd get jealous."

  They were all alone in the room. How long would the engineers be gone? She remembered Farrow's warning: if Spider saw you working on the electroids he'd probably kill you where you stood. But she also remembered telling her daughters to be brave, that she'd meet them on the Oasis station. If Mira wasn't brave, how could her daughters be?

  I need to prove my worth. And I'm not worth much sweeping the floor.

  She set her broom against the wall and approached the workbench, picking up the first electroid part she saw.

  "Every third day Maggy makes soup," Binny continued. "It's thin, but filling, with carrots and celery from the synthetic garden. We don't have a lot of food, and Farrow is worried that if our size grows beyond--HEY!" Binny's broom clattered to the floor. "What are you doing? Get away from there!"

  Mira knew what the problem was. Electroids varied by model depending on how old they were. The modifications were usually subtle, but occasionally something important changed, like the number of wires in a connector between parts. The factory workers had to stay late whenever a model changed, spending extra time learning the differences.

  But someone untrained wouldn't know enough to tell the difference between models. The electroid arm in Mira's hands was a combination of seven parts from three different electroid
models. Which is why the wiring connector won't fit, she thought with a grimace, and why the joint doesn't bend all the way.

  Binny appeared next to her, eyes wide. "Stop! You're going to get in trouble. The engineers are ornery."

  "I'm just being brave," Mira said as she pulled the pieces apart. "You're braver than I, climbing inside that turbine."

  "That's different. I'm supposed to do that. It's my job. You aren't supposed to be touching the electroid pieces. Nobody is, they're too valuable. If the engineers come back, or worse, Spider..."

  "Go watch the door for me, then. This won't take long."

  Binny made an exasperated noise, and seemed to bounce up and down as she struggled with what to do. Finally she ran across the room on quiet feet. She peered out into the corridor, nervously glancing back.

  Mira quickly disassembled the incorrect arm and strode to the huge pile of spare parts. She began hunting, picking out the parts she recognized. It soon became obvious that most of the electroid parts in the pile were from a model two iterations old. That was fine, now that she knew. Parts flew and clattered as she tossed the good ones in the direction of the work bench. Fifteen main parts comprised an electroid arm, but she only wanted the internal pieces, not the external plating. The plating was universal, anyways, rarely changing from model to model.

  She returned to the bench with an armful of metal and wires. She sorted them into three piles, one for each model of electroid. She wanted to assemble three, so the engineers could see the difference between models. Her hands moved of their own accord, deftly fastening one piece into another. She'd hated her job at the factory, competing against the other women, worried she might be seized at any moment, toiling for the Empire that came and killed and conquered. This was different. Her fingers worked with purpose, the familiar motions somehow soothing. And of course the result would be different. These electroids would not help the Empire.

  The danger felt different, too. At the factory there was an omnipresent feeling that at any moment the Melisao peacekeepers would arrive and drag someone away to be questioned, or worse. Here the danger was a muted thumping in her head, a race against the clock before someone found her. Because she wasn't afraid that they would find her; she was afraid they would find her before she'd finished. She worked furiously, never making a mistake, never cutting herself on the worn parts.

  One electroid arm materialized, then another. Finally she finished the third. She arranged them side-by-side, all nearly identical except for the mundane differences apparently only Mira knew. My hands have value, here.

  Binny let out a long sigh as Mira returned to her broom. "You're not brave, you're stupid," she said, hands on her hips. "Been here ten minutes and you're already making trouble."

  Mira tried to look innocent. "It's fine, I didn't do anything."

  "And how do you know I won't tell Farrow you've been messing around?"

  "Don't worry about that," Mira said. "He'll know soon."

  They finished sweeping up all the sand before the engineers returned. With that done Binny led Mira out of the workshop and down the hall to the kitchen.

  It appeared as it had before: two tables in the room filled with a dozen people, except now they ate soup instead of drinking alcohol. None of them looked up at their entrance, nor did they seem to care that Mira was new. "They're used to people coming and going," Binny said, as if reading her thoughts. "Only two or three people have been here as long as I have, but that's just because I never leave the base. It's more dangerous out on the sand."

  The bowls were square-shaped and made of metal, and Mira accepted a ladle of soup and crust of bread from Maggy. Mira smiled widely and gave her thanks. Maggy wiped her hands on her dirty apron and grumbled, "Don't care what the girl told ya, no extra helpings. No matter how much you smile." That made Binny giggle.

  They sat at the end of one table, several seats away from the others. Mira didn't realize how famished she'd felt until the smell of soup hit her nose. Binny was right: it was mostly water, with a bit of soft vegetable every third spoonful. Mira didn't care. She moved her spoon like a weapon, eating the broth as quickly as she could, and sopping up the remains with her bread.

  Only after turning her attention away from the soup did she notice Spider. He sat across the room on the floor in a corner, his bowl in one hand and spoon in the other, eyes searching while he ate. They lingered a long time on Mira, so she looked away.

  "He always does that," Binny said with soup in her mouth. "Doesn't trust anyone. No one really trusts him, either, on account that he's a Melisao."

  "I can see why."

  She tore off tiny chunks of her bread and examined the rest of the group. Individuals slowly finished their meals and left. They all wore faded clothes in muted shades of brown and orange. The one splash of vibrancy came from the long cape each person wore. It ran down to the ankles in rippling shades of gold, flickering in the overhead light of the kitchen. It seemed so out of place compared with the rest of the filth--both within the base and on the people themselves--that Mira was at a loss for words.

  She was about to ask Binny about it when Maggy appeared over her shoulder. She leaned over and took their empty bowls from the table... and smoothly replaced them with two new ones, filled with another serving of soup. She patted Binny on the shoulder and disappeared. Binny gave Mira a look that said I told you so.

  Mira was tempted to ask for another piece of bread as well, but decided not to try her luck.

  The only ones remaining were them, Spider, and Maggy when the two engineers suddenly strode back into the kitchen. "Which one of you did this?" one asked, holding out an electroid arm like a club.

  Binny stiffened, and across the room Spider rose to his feet, braids swaying.

  The engineers approached their table. "You two were in there," one accused. "Did you see who fouled up our electroid parts? Or did you do it, newcomer?" He jabbed the part in Mira's direction.

  She'd been brave before, but now fear crept up her spine. "You were using parts from different models. It was all wrong. It wouldn't have functioned properly. I fixed it, and assembled three different models of arms so you can see the difference between each one."

  She felt proud and confident, but it only lasted a moment.

  "We didn't want it to function properly," one of the engineers spat, waving the arm in her face. "We wanted it to function well-enough to hold a weapon. The O-18 model's elbow joints can't support the weight, so we have to swap it with the O-20 model. We don't care about range of motion, so long as it can aim straight and steady."

  Oh, thought Mira.

  The two engineers boxed her in, and she was vaguely aware of Spider approaching from across the room. I was supposed to prove my worth, she thought frantically. All she'd proven was that she could be a nuisance.

  Binny got to her feet and cried, "She was only trying to help!" Her hands balled into fists as she moved between them, standing protectively over Mira.

  The second engineer slammed his electroid arm down on the table with a clang and pushed Binny out of the way. "You connected the clamp wiring all wrong, too. It's supposed to route along the grooves in the outer casing, but instead you wrapped it around the pneumatic pump."

  Spider had reached the table, and stood with his legs spread, holding his empty bowl like a weapon. Soup ran out the side and dribbled onto the floor.

  Any courage Mira had mustered earlier disappeared. "They trained us to do it that way," she said, hunching down into her shoulders. "The grooves along the forearm plate get too hot and damage the wires. They said it would be fixed in a later model, but until then we were instructed..."

  "That doesn't make any sense..." said the second engineer.

  "Who the fuck is 'they'?" the first engineer asked.

  Mira said, "The factory trainers."

  "What factory?"

  "Factory twelve, in Praetar City. I worked there before..." she trailed off.

  The engineers both straightened
. "You worked in an electroid factory?"

  Mira nodded. "They brought in trainers every time the model of electroid changed, to show us what was different. It happened every few months. We had to learn quick, or they'd replace us with someone new. Sometimes that was easier than training an old worker, but I always stayed late and studied to make sure I got the specs right."

  Spider picked Mira up by the back of her shirt and lifted her out of her seat. "This steadfast-lover spent years working for the Empire," he growled, "and now she's here, helping them still. Spying on us, trying to confuse our engineers. Don't listen to her lies."

  "Stop, please!" Mira stammered. "I was only trying to help."

  "Help," Spider spat the word. "You know what you're doing. Who shows up and starts disobeying orders the first day they're here? No normal person would do that, desperate and scared. Let's see what Akonai has to say."

  He began pushing her toward the door. Binny yelped and grabbed at his arm. He threw her across the room effortlessly. Maggy ran to make sure she was okay, crouching over the girl and glaring at Spider.

  "Kari vouched for me," Mira insisted. "She saw me at Bruno's. Knows I'm innocent."

  "One bitch stands up for another. She's as guilty as you."

  A new voice hissed, "I'm what?"

  Kari stepped into the kitchen doorway, blocking Spider's path. Binny started to speak but the bald woman put up a hand to silence her. "I'm what, Spider? I didn't quite hear you, out in the hall."

  Spider froze in place, still holding Mira by a fistful of her shirt. "A bitch," he growled. "I said you were a bitch, and damned if I'm the first to ever call you on it."

  Kari shook her head. She spoke in a soft voice. "No. You said I was guilty. Of what? I hope you'll tell me."

  "Mother only knows. You've got secrets, that's as clear as Saria's warmth."

  "We've all got secrets." Kari stepped forward. She held something in her hand, down by her side. "What secrets will we find when we peel away your skin, Melisao? What do you have hidden in those blue eyes?"