With Halfmoon secure in its own little bay, Camellia, Meladee, and Eva exited their ship. They entered a bright hallway. Advertisements lined the walls. The pictures were so real.

Camellia marveled at the images and watched as they changed, flashing from sparkling beaches to tall mountain peaks to twisting gardens.

Camellia gasped and pointed at the twisted garden. Bright plants wove together. They produced bursts of flowers, from their lower stems to their higher boughs. “I want to go there.”

She tapped Eva and Meladee to show them, but the picture changed. Now, the three women looked at an ad for an art museum of the naked form: humanoids, insectoids, avians, and reptiles.

Meladee sneered. “You would.”

“I’m sorry I won’t go there.” Eva shook her head.

“No, not there,” Camellia objected, though she really did want to visit a museum that could give her a crash course on alien anatomy. “The picture changed. It was a garden. An alien garden, with tall tentacle-like plants…”

“The fuck you want to go there for?” Meladee said. “That’s worse. Haven’t you had enough of those things? I’m starting to wonder about you. Come on. I want to see at least one of these thirty-seven pools.”

As they walked, Camellia watched the screens. She tried to glimpse the garden again, but amid the hiking trails and romantic getaways, she saw the tentacle garden only once. Again, it disappeared before she could show the others.

Luckily, Eva saw it and admitted, “It’s not as bad as I imagined.”

Meladee harrumphed, still unsure of the garden.

The three women exited the hall of ads and entered an enormous welcome center. On the back wall, they saw concierge desks. Bathroom signs beckoned from their left, and a small waiting lounge offered seating on their right.

“Wow.” Meladee exhaled.

“I know.” Camellia looked up at the ceiling and stared at a cartoonish map of the galaxy.

It showed all the major tourism destinations. Little cartoon figures moved over the map. Everyone smiled.

Meladee looked up too. “Yeah, that’s great too, but I meant the bathrooms.” Meladee gripped her companions’ arms and nodded towards the doors.

Each bathroom sign had four symbols; none of which looked like a man or woman. As they watched, a blob of a person slithered out.

“Which one is for us?” Eva asked. “Not that I plan to enter a bathroom.”

Camellia studied the symbols. “That one. I recognize our genitalia. Well, more precisely, I recognize the masculine symbol. Humanoid privates are placed second in both signs.”

“Yup, that’s a dick.” Meladee nodded. “Seen enough of ‘em drawn on random surfaces. Seems they aren’t so private here. Hey, how do you think that first one works? Look fun?”

Camellia opened her mouth to answer.

Eva interrupted, “Let’s go to the concierge.”

Eva grabbed Camellia and Meladee and pulled them along. They walked across sparkling tiles to reach the first desk. A smiling, metal robot stood behind it. The thing’s cartoonish proportions accentuated her smile, eyes, bust, and hips. Her wrists and waist were mere slivers. Dark metal hair formed a perfect do.

“Welcome to the Galactic Enchanter. Are you from the Halfmoon? Bay 127?”

Camellia listened to the robot’s Ganden, finding her very understandable. She knew Eva had no problems, but Meladee seemed to struggle to catch all the words.

Camellia answered, “Yes, we just arrived. It doesn’t seem very busy.”

“You just missed the departure rush, and the arrival rush won’t be for another four hours when we prepare to disembark. What kind of room can I book for you?”

“Oh, the simplest you have. We can share one bed.” Camellia glanced between her companions to ensure that was okay.

“Alright. I’ve booked you for suite 214. There is one large bed and one couch. That will be four-hundred pinds please.” The robot turned a small computer to face Camellia.

The computer asked for the money with a smile on its screen.

Camellia stared. “About that...I’m not sure how to pay.”

“It’s a handprint scanner. Do you not have those on your planet?” The robot smiled.

“No,” Camellia said. “We...also have a bigger problem. We don’t have any pinds.”

Behind Camellia, Eva muttered quietly about their stupid lack of foresight, and Meladee fidgeted.

Camellia ignored them and offered a quick alternative. “We really just want to have a look around your ship. We’re explorers from...very far away.”

She met the robot’s eyes but didn’t bother with a smile. She suspected pleasant features would not lend weight to her bargain, especially when the other party employed them so effectively. They couldn’t spend all day smiling sweetly at each other.

“Hmm, so long as no one needs your docking space, you can walk around the ship and look, but you won’t be able to enter any of the attractions without a pass. We accept several alternative payments: Frankles, Yunines, Dolermans, and Pezzos. We also trade precious metals and, of course, you can use credit and pay at a later time.”

Camellia held up a single finger. “Let me talk to my associates. Excuse me.” Camellia turned back to her friends and spoke in Tagtrumian. “How much of that did you catch?”

“We have no money,” Meladee said.

“They suggested we pay in precious metal.” Eva added. “We may have some of that.”

Camellia nodded. “Right, I think we only have two options: precious metals or credit. I don’t think we should use credit. We have no plan to pay them back. What kinds of metal do we have on board?”

“We have some blocks of titanium and steel. I also loaded some silver, gold, and platinum. But, our quantities are small, meant for ship repairs only.” Eva looked at the robot. “Still, I think they’d find our materials precious, judging from her composition. I don’t know how long we’ll be out here. It may not be wise to trade metal away.”

“Hey, put it on credit.” Meladee shrugged.

Camellia felt her eyes narrow. “No, that’s a terrible idea.”

Eva nodded.

“Just listen.” Meladee held up a hand. “I saw an ad for sexy type stuff. Looks like this cruise ship has a lot of single men and women on it. We just have to find some rich men, and our stay is paid for.” Meladee pointed at the so-called sexy ads.

Camellia’s mouth dropped open. She watched as the screen advertised places for single people to eat, dance, and have encounters. “We’d be horrible people if we did that,” Camellia said, with wide eyes and a shake of her head.

“I agree.” Eva crossed her arms.

“No, we won’t. Everyone does that kind of thing from time to time. We’ll just be normal people. Look, I want to go to the pool. I have to go to the pool.”

“These men will expect sex from us,” Camellia argued.

“Yeah, so? We just find some nice-looking guys.”

“No random sex.” Eva shook her head.

“I agree.” Camellia turned away from the ad.

Meladee growled. “Fine. Bargain away our precious supplies.”

“Meladee,” Camellia half-begged, half-scolded. She shook her head and turned back to the robot woman. “Uh, thank you for being so patient.”

The robot smiled.

“We really want to come aboard. We have titanium and steel. Also gold, silver, and platinum. Are any of those valuable to you?”

“Yes, any of those metals would be sufficient payment.” The robot pointed at a screen on the desk, and a table of materials and quantities flashed into existence. “These are the quantities we are currently accepting.”

Eva glanced at the list. She whispered to Camellia, “We have nothing approaching those quantities.”

Camellia frowned. I’m not opening a line of credit. I won’t begin my trek through the wormhole committing monetary fraud. For all I know, they could track me back to Iruedim. That would be a hard one to explain to...Adalhard.

Camellia faced her companions. “I don’t see how…”

“I’ll cover their tickets,” a deep voice called.

The women started and turned to find their rescuer, a green man with thin tentacles in place of hair. His short beard was also composed of thready strands. The women gaped as he attempted to cover their fare.

“How does three days sound?” he asked. He flashed a winning smile.

“Oh, that’s very generous, but you don’t have to. We can’t pay you back.” Camellia almost touched his arm but stopped before her hand found his tree trunk of a limb.

“Sure you can. With the pleasure of your company.”

Camellia stared. She glanced at Meladee and caught the pilot’s told-you-so glare.

“We accept,” Meladee managed to say in her imperfect Ganden.

Eva and Camellia’s mouths dropped open.

“Wonderful. My name is Amantius, and these are my friends Benham and Fotis.” Amantius gestured to his friends and then moved to complete the transaction.

Camellia put her hand on his. “I’m not comfortable with this. We can’t accept.” Camellia glared at Meladee and turned to go.

Amantius looked at his friends. Both men stiffened and watched the interaction.

“I can afford it,” he countered.

Camellia shook her head. “No, sorry. We still can’t accept.”

“Look, we’ll try it out, and if it doesn’t work, we can go our separate ways. I really don’t mind spending the money. You’re from far away. You’ve obviously got no currency – consider it a kind of diplomacy. None of us have anything to lose.” Amantius spread his hands. He looked at both his friends.

From their expressions, Camellia could tell that they worried.

“Come on.” Meladee gestured to the men. She spoke in Tagtrumian. “They offered. It’s fine. Maybe, you can think of it like a guy funding your research or whatever. How is it any different?”

It was very different. No funding came with an expectation of intimacy. At least, none of hers did. But, Camellia wanted to see inside the ship. How many other places would they go that required an entry fee? How would they interact with the people of this galaxy with no money and no knowledge?

Camellia sighed. “Alright.” She turned to Amantius and switched to Ganden. “I really don’t want to disappoint you. We can’t pay you back. We can’t...establish relationships.”

Amantius grinned.

His friends exhaled.

“It’s just a bit of fun. I can more than afford to pay for your tiny suite.” Amantius read their order and completed the transaction. He stole glances at Camellia.

She pulled her gaze from his friendly if hungry eyes and examined the other men. Meladee and Eva were one step ahead of her.

Benham was tan with dark brown hair. At about five foot ten, he was shorter than Amantius. Benham’s face had a genuine and congenial quality. Fotis’ appearance opposed Benham’s. The man was also dark haired, but his complexion was pale. He sported twisting horns atop his head, and smoldering eyes. Camellia supposed he was what one would call tall, dark, and handsome.

“What brings you to this part of the galaxy?” Amantius asked.

“We’re explorers,” Camellia said, still dazed.

“And your names?”

“I’m sorry.” Camellia put a hand to her chest. “I’m Camellia. This is Meladee, and this is Eva.” Camellia gestured to her friends. “We’re very grateful that you bought us tickets, but we wouldn’t want to impose.”

The men smiled, with the exception of Fotis who smoldered.

“It’s no imposition.” Amantius offered her his arm. “We just returned from a hike on the planet Piacer. We could use some company.”

Camellia took his arm, feeling a thrum of guilt.

Benham offered his arm to Meladee.

She took it and whispered to Camellia in Tagtrumian, “Perfect. You get the one with tentacles. You love tentacles.”

Fotis gave Eva his arm, and she reluctantly grasped it.

With a smile, Benham opened the conversation, “You said you were explorers. You speak Ganden with strange accents. Where are you from? A long way from home?”

“We’re a lot farther than that.” Meladee smirked.

Benham knit his brow and waited patiently. Meladee never explained herself. Instead, she rewarded his curiosity with another mischievous smile.

Camellia wanted to have a talk with Meladee. She also wanted to hide her own face. From Eva’s stoney gaze, Camellia deduced that Eva felt the same.

Camellia tried to prevent any more flirtatious comments from Meladee. “We’re not really sure of our homeworld’s location in relation to this place,” Camellia half-lied, choosing her words carefully.

“Are you lost? What’s your homeworld called?” Benham asked. He gazed at Meladee with concern and spared a concerned glance for both Camellia and Eva.

Camellia longed to change the subject but struggled to find a new topic.

“We’re alright.” Meladee patted his arm. “And, you wouldn’t recognize our homeworld if I told you, so let’s not bother with those details.”

“I’d like to. I work as a travel guide for remote locations.” Benham gave Meladee his full attention.

Camellia’s heart beat fast, and in her own mind, she begged Meladee to change the subject. She didn’t want to explain Iruedim to these men. They seemed nice enough, but she thought Iruedim should remain their secret for now.

“Travel guide? How’s that work?” Meladee asked.

“I take tour groups on climbs, volcano treks, scuba dives...anything like that. That’s why I’m interested in your home planet. Every planet has some kind of adventure, and it sounds like yours is very remote. If I’m the only travel guide who knows about it, I can offer an experience no one else can. That would give me an advantage over the competition.” Benham leaned close and bowed his head over hers.

Meladee smiled and turned a happy face to his. “Man, have I got a unique experience for you.”

Benham half-smiled. The rest of his expression betrayed surprise and a touch of confusion. He waited and listened.

Camellia’s hopes had risen with Meladee’s change of subject. Then plummeted, as Meladee again teased the man, inciting his interest. She had never wanted to slap Meladee before. The new feeling worried her.

Eva said, “We are not at liberty to discuss our planet.”

“She can be very serious,” Meladee warned.

“Secret planets. This should be interesting.” Amantius tightened his grip on Camellia’s arm.

Eva…Eva…Eva…Why would that kill their interest?

Now, Amantius would join in Benham’s quest. Instead, he came to her rescue. He changed the subject. “Should we eat first or visit one of the pools?”

“Pool!” Meladee shouted.

“Pool, I guess,” Camellia said. “Though, I can’t swim.” To some degree, Camellia feared water, but she would ‘swim’ if it stopped the conversation about Iruedim.

“You can’t swim?” Amantius stroked Camellia’s hand. “We can keep you to the shallows, or I can give you lessons. How about you girls?” He glanced back at Meladee and Eva.

“I can swim,” Eva answered.

“I was a sailor, so yes.”

Benham smiled. “Sailor? That’s somewhat outdated. What do you do now?”

“I pilot ships and save secret worlds,” Meladee teased, with a smirk.

Benham grinned.

Camellia abandoned her notion to give Meladee a slap and, instead, wished to gag their pilot. Meladee would not take the hint.

For a few moments, the group walked in silence. To avoid further Iruedian discussion, Camellia asked Amantius about his species. She learned that he was a Gelea, an amphibious person who spent most of his time in moist environments. She prodded further and requested details about Gelean families, homes, and food sources.

Amantius answered all the questions. Gelean families were large. Their homes were half underwater, half above. They ate fish, seaweed, and other underwater or coastal flora. Before Camellia could ask about his home planet’s geography, Amantius stopped her. “What do you do for a living?”

“I’m an anthropologist.” Camellia blushed and realized she had treated him as a study subject. The only thing missing was her notebook.

He stroked her hand. “Don’t worry. I don't mind. You just seemed so...I don’t know. Formal? Practiced?” Amantius smiled down at her.

Again, silence took over. Amantius led them to the pool, and Camellia kept her attention on the passing people. She itched to know everything she could about the numerous species and found it difficult to focus on just Amantius. Never before had she been presented with so many peoples, in one place, at one time.

Amantius slowed their pace.

Camellia read a sign: Main swimming deck - Pools 5 through 32. Camellia smelt a chemical scent and heard water ahead.

Before they could reach it, they had to walk through a large shop.

“What are those?” Eva asked. She pointed a to row of mannequins.

Each wore a skimpy piece of underwear and a scant bra.

“Swimsuits,” Fotis answered. “You don’t have swimsuits?”

Amantius grinned. “Let’s fix that.” He led Camellia into the store and freed his arm. “That device over there will measure your size.” Amantius gestured to a cylinder with an open door.

Several rods jutted from its interior walls, which happened to be a 360 mirror. A little basket also jutted from the interior.

Amantius continued, “You walk in, undress, and it measures you. After you get your size, you choose something to wear. I’m happy to give advice if you like. I think I get a vote since I’m paying.”

Camellia frowned at the thought of more money spent on her, but Amantius’s smile didn’t waver.

“So, we take our clothes off in that thing? Then...we put on different clothes to swim?” Meladee stroked her chin.

“Yeah. What do you swim in on your secret planet?” Benham asked.

“Nothin’,” Meladee admitted, with a smile. “Sometimes, if I had to go into very cold water, I’d use this weird water suit. It was...uh…”

Meladee paused, and on Meladee’s face, Camellia recognized the struggle to find the right words. Camellia deduced that Meladee wanted to talk about enchanted wetsuits, but Ganden had no word for enchanted. Camellia could think of an alternative, but she wasn’t about to help Meladee.

It turned out that Meladee didn’t need the help. “It kept me warm. You know, like, with magic.”

Ganden did have a word for magic. Camellia had heard it many times in a repetitive commercial for some sort of cleaning solution.

“Magic?” Again, Benham knit his brow.

Meladee broke from his arm and walked to Camellia’s side. “So, Camellia get in there. You lead the way.” Meladee pushed Camellia forward.

Camellia merely sighed and stepped into the device. The door shut behind her. She paused a moment to look at herself from every angle and to ensure there were no holes in the mirrored-surface. Then, Camellia undressed.

The device detected her unclothed form and shot tiny lights towards her body. Camellia jumped; then remained still at the device’s request. The device displayed Camellia’s size. She memorized it and redressed, feeling violated.

When Camellia exited the cylinder, Meladee raised her eyebrows.

“How was it?” Meladee asked.

“Not so bad.” Camellia arranged her hair over her shoulders, trying to feel comfortable in her clothes again.

Amantius gestured for her to pick an outfit. Camellia plodded her way to the racks. While Camellia started shopping, Meladee and then Eva disappeared into the cylinder. Both seemed a little shaken when they stepped out.

Twenty minutes later, all three women wore their bathing suits. Camellia chose a simple black one piece, ruched on the sides. She kept her bare legs close together and her arms near her breasts. Eva wore a red one piece. She glared around the store and stood stiff. Meladee wore a blue bikini, with a full bottom. She crossed her arms and shot disappointed looks at Camellia and Eva.

The men also changed. They wore even less, baring their chests completely. Camellia had participated in half-naked cultures before, but it was always an adjustment.

Camellia looked at her shirtless suitor and noted he had small fins running the length of his arms and legs. He’s also very muscular, Camellia thought guiltily.

Meladee’s swim buddy, Benham, was fit and lean, with a strong upper body.

Eva’s Fotis had the leanest build of all.

As they again took their dates’ arms, the pools came into view. Camellia looked into a cavernous space. Tropical plants reached to the ceiling, a simulated blue and sunny sky. Stone paths wove around the crystalline waters. A slow-moving river circled the entire room, and tall slides beckoned in the distance. After a short debate, Amantius convinced the girls to try one of the nearer pools.

Camellia stayed in the shallow end, braving waves up to her waist. Amantius swam nearby and returned to splash her every few minutes. The others swam in the deeper end, and Camellia missed her friends. While Meladee spared only passing glances, Eva looked back at Camellia often.

“Can I take you deeper?” Amantius asked, not splashing her this time.

Camellia’s half-dry, half-wet hair dripped into her eyes. “No, not yet. Next time,” she promised.

“Alright, I’ll hold you to that.” Amantius swam away.

“What does he want?” Eva asked, striding to Camellia’s side.

“He just wants to swim me out to the deeper end. It’s fine.” Camellia sighed. “Why are you back?”

Eva raised her eyebrows. “We aren’t here to have fun. We have to find some way to help our people.” Although she spoke Groazan, she leaned close.

Camellia glanced at the men. “We will, but Meladee wants to have some fun. Besides, I’m learning a bit about the people, and this pool is a great place to see lots of different species. We can play and get valuable information here.” Camellia said it all in a half-hearted tone.

“You don’t seem to be playing very much.”

“I know. I’m just thinking.” Camellia quieted and erased the anxiety from her face as Amantius approached.

“Ready?”

She nodded. “Don’t let me go,” she added, her face suddenly serious.

“I wouldn’t think of it.” Amantius wrapped his arms around her and pulled her into the water. He held her close as he swam them to the deep end.

Camellia clung to him, feeling not at all safe.

As she splashed at the bottom of a slide, Meladee laughed. She swam after Benham and pulled herself on to the pool’s edge.

“I need a break,” she called.

“Me too.” Benham joined her on her perch.

They sat in silence and watched others go down the slide.

Benham nudged Meladee with his elbow. “So, you’re a pilot. Camellia’s an anthropologist. What does Eva do?”

“Eva doesn’t really have a job. She just fixes things. Sometimes, she builds them. I guess she’s kind of an engineer.” Meladee pulled one knee to her chest and wrapped her arms around it. “What about your friends? How do they have money to burn?”

Benham rubbed the back of his neck. “They’re both pretty wealthy. Amantius used to be a day trader, until he made a small fortune. Now, he invests in businesses, and Fotis runs a shipping company. I met them when they booked trips with me, and from there, we became friends.” Benham swung his legs in the water, kicking up some spray. “How did you meet your friends?”

“Camellia wanted me to fly her somewhere. I was just going to drop her off, but it turned out she was going somewhere really interesting...and terrifying.” Meladee watched the swimmers but tilted her head towards Benham. “I just had to see how it turned out. A little while later, Eva showed up, and she added to the whole adventure. I ferried them both around cause…” Meladee paused and smiled. “...I guess I liked them.”

Benham smiled too. “What could an anthropologist possibly do that’s so terrifying?” He stroked a wet strand of hair off Meladee’s shoulder.

“I don’t know if I should tell you.” Meladee shook her head. “Eva and Camellia would kill me if I revealed the secret after mere hours of playing swim tag with you. And, they’re already on my case for this whole immoral dating thing.”

“Immoral dating?” Benham laughed. “Because Amantius paid for your room? He pays for me all the time.” Benham chuckled again.

“Yeah, but Camellia would say that’s fine. Cause you’re friends. She doesn’t really believe in this whole casual romance thing.” Meladee gestured between the two of them as she talked. “I do this kind of thing all the time. I find a guy. I spend time with him. He understands he’s paying.” Meladee slid her feet out of the water and faced Benham. “Eva and Camellia – they don’t do that. They don’t really have fun. I suggested we pay you guys back with sex, and they were horrified.”

“Sex?” Benham asked.

“Yeah. Casual sex.” Meladee could see sudden excitement on Benham’s face.

“We’d like that,” Benham half-joked.

“I know you would.” Meladee paused and smiled mischievously. “Cause you’re men.” Then, she got up and headed to another pool. She glanced back at him to ensure he followed.

Camellia knelt and toweled off her hair. She caught her breath and avoided thoughts of water. Her heart slowed, and she turned away from the pool. She found herself under a short, red-topped tree. It’s red-purple leaves sprouted out of the trunk in a fan shape. Little berries hung from the leaves, and the bumpy bark felt smooth. Camellia kept her towel around her shoulders and caressed the trunk.

“Jolan tree.” Amantius squatted by her and pointed to the tree. “You’ve never seen a Jolan tree?”

Camellia smiled and averted her gaze. “No. Everything is new to me.”

Amantius leaned close and put his hand behind her head.

Oh no. Camellia startled and looked up. She wanted to avoid his kiss, so she turned her head. Camellia prepared to apologize.

Eva joined them. “What’s going on there?”

Eva pointed at a large family of long snouted beings. The biggest, likely a male, spoke to uniformed men. He gestured to his family: a wife and eight small children. The uniformed men gathered up the family and led them away.

Amantius shrugged. “Maybe, their travel didn’t get approved, or they might suspect them of having too many kids. Eight isn’t a lot for a Gelean, but it’s more than most species are allowed.”

Camellia frowned. “There are limits on how many children people can have?”

Camellia thought about her huge family. While some Iruedian families were small, most were large, assuming both parents and children could survive their country’s select dangers long enough.

Amantius nodded. “Yeah, to control population growth.”

Eva shimmied away from the uniformed men. “We don’t have approved travel.”

Fotis took her arm. “It should be fine. Your planet is on the outskirts, right? If you aren’t members of the Finial, they won’t hold you to the same rules.”

“The Finial,” Camellia repeated. She watched the family get taken away. “What will happen to them?”

“Depends. Either their vacation will get cut short, or they’ll get fined for the extra kids and have to pay additional taxes on them. Hopefully, it’s the first one.” Amantius put his arm around Camellia. “Come on. Let’s have some fun where we won’t see a whole lot of people. Maybe, a quiet walk in the garden.” He led her from the pool room.

She glanced back but allowed him to guide her.

Eva and Fotis followed.

As they walked, Camellia couldn’t help but wonder about the Finial. She didn’t want to ask Amantius more questions, so she just speculated.

Camellia searched their party. Meladee didn’t walk with them. Camellia looked back at the pools but couldn’t spot her friend. Where was Meladee?

Camellia and Eva retired to their small suite.

A fresh smell permeated the room, and Camellia inhaled. She prepared to tuck herself into the bed, but first, she looked at Eva. Eva began to arrange the couch, so Camellia withheld her offer to share the bed. Eva could sleep anywhere, and when Meladee returned, Camellia would need to share with her.

“She’s going to be tired.” Eva threw all the pillows on the floor and reclined.

After dinner, Meladee had decided to stay out with Benham, but Camellia and Eva had said goodnight. Amantius and Fotis begged them to stay up. Eva refused, steadfast, and Camellia was glad of it. She had almost given in. Still, Amantius stole a small kiss, and Camellia burned with discomfort. Fotis tried the same with Eva, but she denied his attempt. Meladee had laughed and wished them both good-night. Then, she disappeared into the Galactic Enchanter. With some annoyance, Camellia wondered if Meladee would return to the suite.

“She might be tired,” Camellia agreed. She pulled back the covers and got into the high, plush bed. As she arranged the pillows, she continued, “Tomorrow, I hope we can work on our problem. We shouldn’t be out here having fun.”

“No, we shouldn’t.” Eva turned off her light, and the room beyond plunged into darkness.

Camellia flipped her light switch as well. Now, the entire suite grew dark. Camellia’s eyes adjusted quick. She saw Eva, eyes closed. She assumed Eva slept, so she kept her thoughts to herself.

This Finial seems...controlling. But, it’s the government here. I wonder if they can help us. Camellia sighed and laid awake. Her eyes roved around her surroundings, and she marveled at how similar hotel rooms were.

Whether she traveled to the south of Iruedim, or out the wormhole to a different galaxy, every hotel had a crisp, clean quality. A small air vent released a cool breeze into the room, and Camellia listened till her eyes drifted shut.

Warm wind blew through Camellia’s window. The smell of grass and cider rode the breeze. Camellia walked to the sunny window and looked out.

She saw her father’s farm – not as she remembered it, but as a pillowed landscape. The orchard sprouted felt trees. Below the trees, bloody fruits lay on the cloth-like ground, staining it. The cornfield had no vegetation, just a print of corn ears from end to end. Camellia’s favorite, the barometz field, was a mass of cotton balls. The barns and other out-buildings sat like wooden toys on a bed.

Camellia looked down. Though she slept on the first floor, she found herself several stories up. A swing hung from her windowsill, and Camellia remembered her father’s admonition not to swing from such a height, during the day or otherwise.

In the distance, Sorin and Amantius argued. They pointed at her window, and Camellia wondered which of her suitors would win the day: the long dead vampire or the robust amphibious man.

“Come down.”

Camellia looked below to find Adalhard on the ground by one of the farmhouse’s support beams.

“I can’t. I’m not allowed to use this swing.” She pointed to the swing that dangled ten feet above Adalhard’s head.

“You’re not allowed to do a lot.”

“I know.” Camellia looked behind her. She could use the stairs to meet Adalhard, but there was no way out. She informed him, “There’s no door.”

“Just come down please.”

Camellia turned back and found Adalhard close. Her window now stood only eight feet from the ground. A window box of frozen roses replaced her swing, and an enclosed yard of the frosty blooms blocked her view of the farm. Camellia reached outside and tried to grab a rose from the flower box. The bloom broke in her hands. Adalhard plucked one, and from his hand, she took it.