stomach from her last meal. The water was a little more difficult. As thirsty as she was, it took a great deal of effort to drink it all. She was still working on it when an attendant grasped her by her elbow and began to march her down a narrow, crowded corridor.
Her clothes were removed, and she was stuffed into a ‘chamber’ that looked little bigger than the one she’d climbed in to to avoid Marty the last time she’d escaped. Tubes were inserted into orifices she would have preferred remained virginal, and the lid was slammed shut.
A tinny metal voice sounded in her ears. “We have a limited selection of entertainment for the cruise. Would you prefer ‘music through the ages’, language, science, or earth history?”
Jana pondered it for less than a second, realizing she had been given an opportunity she had never thought to have. “Could I have a mixture of education?” she mumbled around the tube that had been inserted in her throat.
“Done.”
It was the last word Jana recalled hearing before she woke up.
Chapter Three
Jana woke to a sense of choking and the realization that someone was pounding on her chest. She gagged, choked and began coughing.
“There you go! That’s it—breathe.”
Jana began shaking as if she had the ague. Partly, this was from disorientation, but mostly it was because she felt as if she were freezing. It took an effort to open her eyes and look around. Her eyelids felt as if they’d been glued shut.
When she finally did manage to pry her eyelids up, all she could see was a great white blur with dark shapes. Blindly, she felt around until she could grasp something to help her stand.
“Careful, now. You’re going to feel just a little shaky for a while.”
A little? The woman speaking was obviously an optimist. Jana turned toward the voice. All she could see was a dark blob. “I—I think I might be blind,” she said apologetically.
Someone laughed, slapping her on the back hard enough she stumbled and began choking again.
“Naw. You just haven’t used your eyes in a while. Your vision will clear. You’ll feel great by the time we land.”
“We’re there already?”
The blob, which had slowly begun to resolve itself into a stocky woman who looked to be around thirty, laughed again. “It took us six weeks, almost twice what we’d expected, but then we were broke down on Aturis for nearly a week. Then, we’d no sooner reached Palcia than we discovered we had a major hydraulic leak. We were there another week.”
That was comforting. She’d traveled across the universe in a ship that had broken down--twice. And it had taken almost twice as long to reach her destination as had been expected.
Would Marty be waiting on the ground to greet her?
She pushed the thought aside, unwilling to allow herself to yield to unfounded fears.
She wondered if there had been a specific time when she’d been expected to arrive. Would it be a good thing, or bad, that she hadn’t arrived before now? Would they still be expecting her? Waiting? Or would she find that she was completely on her own?
“How long before we land?”
“We’re on final approach now. They sent me down to wake you up, then I’ve got to go help prep the lander. If you like, you can come with me. You might want to put something on first, though.
Jana looked down at herself. She’d forgotten they’d taken her clothes. “I don’t know where they put my clothing.”
The woman walked over to a small box on the wall next to the chamber Jana had so lately occupied, pressed a button. Jana’s clothes spilled out into her hands. “Here you go. Don’t look like they’ll do much to keep you warm, though.”
Jana took the wad of cloth offered to her and stared at it in dismay. Even with her vision still blurred, she could see that her skirt and top were dirty, and wrinkled from being balled up and shoved into the tiny locker. She shook them out and put them on anyway. It was
Her clothes were removed, and she was stuffed into a ‘chamber’ that looked little bigger than the one she’d climbed in to to avoid Marty the last time she’d escaped. Tubes were inserted into orifices she would have preferred remained virginal, and the lid was slammed shut.
A tinny metal voice sounded in her ears. “We have a limited selection of entertainment for the cruise. Would you prefer ‘music through the ages’, language, science, or earth history?”
Jana pondered it for less than a second, realizing she had been given an opportunity she had never thought to have. “Could I have a mixture of education?” she mumbled around the tube that had been inserted in her throat.
“Done.”
It was the last word Jana recalled hearing before she woke up.
Chapter Three
Jana woke to a sense of choking and the realization that someone was pounding on her chest. She gagged, choked and began coughing.
“There you go! That’s it—breathe.”
Jana began shaking as if she had the ague. Partly, this was from disorientation, but mostly it was because she felt as if she were freezing. It took an effort to open her eyes and look around. Her eyelids felt as if they’d been glued shut.
When she finally did manage to pry her eyelids up, all she could see was a great white blur with dark shapes. Blindly, she felt around until she could grasp something to help her stand.
“Careful, now. You’re going to feel just a little shaky for a while.”
A little? The woman speaking was obviously an optimist. Jana turned toward the voice. All she could see was a dark blob. “I—I think I might be blind,” she said apologetically.
Someone laughed, slapping her on the back hard enough she stumbled and began choking again.
“Naw. You just haven’t used your eyes in a while. Your vision will clear. You’ll feel great by the time we land.”
“We’re there already?”
The blob, which had slowly begun to resolve itself into a stocky woman who looked to be around thirty, laughed again. “It took us six weeks, almost twice what we’d expected, but then we were broke down on Aturis for nearly a week. Then, we’d no sooner reached Palcia than we discovered we had a major hydraulic leak. We were there another week.”
That was comforting. She’d traveled across the universe in a ship that had broken down--twice. And it had taken almost twice as long to reach her destination as had been expected.
Would Marty be waiting on the ground to greet her?
She pushed the thought aside, unwilling to allow herself to yield to unfounded fears.
She wondered if there had been a specific time when she’d been expected to arrive. Would it be a good thing, or bad, that she hadn’t arrived before now? Would they still be expecting her? Waiting? Or would she find that she was completely on her own?
“How long before we land?”
“We’re on final approach now. They sent me down to wake you up, then I’ve got to go help prep the lander. If you like, you can come with me. You might want to put something on first, though.
Jana looked down at herself. She’d forgotten they’d taken her clothes. “I don’t know where they put my clothing.”
The woman walked over to a small box on the wall next to the chamber Jana had so lately occupied, pressed a button. Jana’s clothes spilled out into her hands. “Here you go. Don’t look like they’ll do much to keep you warm, though.”
Jana took the wad of cloth offered to her and stared at it in dismay. Even with her vision still blurred, she could see that her skirt and top were dirty, and wrinkled from being balled up and shoved into the tiny locker. She shook them out and put them on anyway. It was
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