Minmin

"This one is Bars?" Owen asked.

I had reshaped my okulus into a wide screen and placed it on the glass table so we could all watch it. We sat on the couch - Owen to my left and Vai to my right. Warpaint stood by the couch on Vai's side. Shel and Esther were somewhere behind us. I knew Shel didn't have much of an interest in Waters Reaching, but he pretended and I appreciated that.

Esther suddenly leaned in behind my shoulder between me and Owen. "He's the one you like?"

Like didn't seem an adequate word. I couldn't really explain my true feelings without coming off as an obsessive, weird fan. "Yes," I simply said. "His character name in the show is Timo."

"And he's a detective trying to figure out why Starwatchers keep disappearing around this lake," Owen said.

"Correct," I said.

"Is it a serial killer?" Esther hadn't moved from her new spot - leaning over the back of the couch with her head next to mine. I wondered if she knew she was putting herself between me and Owen. No one except me had noticed their closeness in general. And I still thought they didn't even realize it. Maybe I was wrong. Maybe I was just too romantic. I didn't think I was wrong though.

"No," I said. "That wouldn't be scary."

"It wouldn't?" Owen asked. "Serial killers sound scary to me."

"They're not scary," I said. "You just have to lock them up or kill them."

"Then why is it a horror show?" Esther asked.

"So this lake was formed during an unnaturally wet season," I said.

"In a small farming community," Shel added from somewhere behind. He had heard me tell this before.

"Right," I said. "Hold on, Bars is about to speak." I paused the show. On the screen, Bars stood in front of the lake talking with two farmers whose children had just disappeared. An oversized mosquito had frozen nearby them. Tall, green reeds came up to the Starwatchers's thighs.

I turned to look over the shoulder that wasn't currently occupied by Esther. Shel stood there hovering behind Vai.

"You know what would be the best gift you could give me," I said to him.

"I'm not dubbing over Bars's voice with the voice I used on Sergeant Demir," he said flatly.

"That wasn't what I was going to say," I lied. Except now I didn't have any other excuses. "I like Bars's voice." That wasn't a lie. I did like his voice, it was just that Shel's voice he used on Sergeant Demir could melt the stars.

"So the show is scary because of the unnatural lake?" Esther saved me.

"Not just the lake. It's possessed by an evil water spirit. It's taking Starwatchers and drowning them. Here." I pulled up a new tab and opened it to the first episode of Waters Reaching. I pushed play at the exact time the water spirit reached up with a large oversized watered hand and grabbed a male Starwatcher farmer. It pulled him into the lake. The water rippled and bubbled and finally stilled. The stillness caused goosebumps on my arms. "See? Frightening."

"An imaginary water spirit is more frightening than a serial killer which actually exists?" Owen asked in disbelief.

"Water spirits are real," I said.

I turned to Vai just in time to see him and Shel exchange a dismissive glance.

"They are," I said. "Look, not too long ago we didn't know about the Corruption and the Awakened Ones. They exist. Who knows what else is out there?"

"That's true," Owen said. Esther nodded.

I turned to Vai and Shel. They both nodded. I went back to the latest episode - still paused on Bars and the two farmers - when the door opened and El and Lieutenant Tanpo walked in.

"Esther, how was school today?" El asked.

It had been a week since the fostering paperwork had been approved and Esther had started attending classes with us. She didn't hide her face under her cloak while walking the corridors anymore either. We always made sure either I or Shel were with her to make sure she wouldn't have to answer any unwanted questions - especially from security.

"Good." She finally stood up and backed away from my shoulder.

"No more questions about your sudden appearance?" El asked. Mark and Viko in particular had been suspicious. They soon gave up when none of the other students seemed interested and they found out she was Shel's foster sister.

"No more questions," Esther said.

"Sorry, Vai, but we need to have a conversation about the Corruption."

Vai rolled his eyes as he stood. I shifted slightly now that Vai's weight wasn't on the couch. Warpaint moved to stand next to Vai. "It's not your fault. It's my father's." He walked towards the door.

Owen slid off the couch. "I'll go with you," he said.

"It's all right," Vai said. "You can stay."

"No. I want to go with you. You don't need me to stay do you?" Owen asked El.

"No," El said. "I mainly need to speak with Esther and Minmin you may leave."

Me? Why did she need to speak with me? I gathered my okulus and reshaped it to fit around my wrist. I closed the current episode of Waters Reaching. I waved goodbye, but Vai and Owen didn't turn around as they left followed closely by Warpaint.

"What is it?" Esther asked when the door had slid shut.

"Have you tried to reach out to the Awakened One?" El asked.

"Not really. I've been so excited about the fostering I haven't really thought about anything else."

A soft smile touched El's blue lips. "That's understandable," she said, "but we must get on with our battle against the Corruption. I tried to reach out to the Awakened One last night, but I couldn't find him. You've had contact with him before. You should have better luck. Make sure he is safe and hidden. Find out where he is so we can find him again."

Esther nodded. "I will reach out to him tonight."

"Minmin," El said. I sat a little straighter. Shel sat on the back of the couch behind me. "You are the only one who has not killed the Corruption."

"But Lieutenant Tanpo hasn't either," I said.

"She was at least able to push them back with her shield on Doussix," El said. "Tonight will be your first battle."

Battle. She made it sound dramatic. I just had to kill the host and the Corruption.

"I've gone over my list of those with the Corruption with Lieutenant Commander Ma'amaloa and I was able to add a few more to my list. And he has provided me with a crew schedule. There is a maintenance worker who should be working in the maintenance tunnels on deck 9 as we speak. Go now and kill him. He is a Bundu-Jo. His name is Blerko. Esther, would you lend her the Aether Field Prototype so she can kill the Corruption after she takes care of Blerko?"

"Of course." Esther went into our shared quarters. There was only one large bed that we both shared. Esther had a habit of hugging me in her sleep. I almost kicked her the first night. I wasn't her stuffed animal. But she called out her dead brother's name in her sleep and then I couldn't help but feel bad for her.

"What about the body?" I asked El. "If Vai isn't involved anymore, Warpaint can't burn the bodies."

"Just get the body back here," El said. "Lieutenant Commander Ma'amaloa will be handling all the body disposals from now on."

Esther came out of our quarters and handed me the Aether Field Prototype. It was lighter than I had expected.

"Lieutenant Tanpo will go to be your backup just in case you need help," El said. "But I think you'll be able to do it yourself."

I nodded. Now was my turn. I always knew I'd have to contribute like this one day, but I thought I'd have more warning.

I stood and went to the door. Lieutenant Tanpo was close behind me. I turned to look at Shel. His facial expression didn't change, but I could tell through his eyes that he believed in me. He raised a blue hand in farewell. I waved goodbye to him and Esther. El had already moved on to something else.

I exited the door and went to a nearby corridor with a maintenance hatch. Only the lights greeted us. I put in the code to open the maintenance hatch. I was a little surprised it was never changed. Of course, security didn't know that was how Esther used to get around and she had a hacking device so it wouldn't matter if they hadn't changed it or not. I crawled inside. Lieutenant Tanpo crawled in after me.

We made our way silently to deck 9. Normally, Lieutenant Tanpo was friendly and I liked to think that I was too. However, at this moment - killing someone with the Corruption - stealth seemed more in order.

It didn't take us too long to find the Bundu-Jo once we reached deck 9. Light bounced off the walls of the maintenance shaft as he used a vibroscalpel to cauterize a small tear in the metal walls.

Even though he was busy, I didn't think I could sneak up on him in such tight quarters. He was going to notice me before I could kill him. I still held the Aether Field Prototype in my hand. I hid it in the hood of my new cloak. I waved Lieutenant Tanpo back. She crawled backwards until she went around the nearest corner and out of sight. The maintenance shaft wasn't tall enough for me to stand in without bending over, but I shifted so my feet were first instead of my head.

"Hi," I said. I tried to put on my cutest face and hoped this Bundu-Jo would mistake me for a cute innocent little Starwatcher. I would tell him I used to be on the Armstar and was new on the job. I hoped my innocent expression would keep him from asking why I wasn't in uniform.

He turned and looked at me. I erred. The Corruption recognized me. The pink came to his eyes and his blue face twisted in fury. He rushed at me with his vibroscalpel leading the way. I had an advantage though. He wasn't coming at me fast and he didn't have a lot of room to maneuver in the shaft. He couldn't easily turn around for example.

I kicked at his hand that held the vibroscalpel. The vibroscalpel turned off as it dropped to the metal ground. The sound of it pinged off the small walls of the shaft. I kicked the Bundu-Jo's face at the same time with my other foot.

His purple eyes closed and red blood dripped from his nose, but he managed to grab my ankle with both of his hands. He pulled me towards him and blinked his eyes open.

I kicked him in the shoulder with my other foot. He had dragged me close to him and his hands let go of my foot to wrap around my neck. I had seen where the vibroscalpel had fell and was confident he had dragged me not only to him, but to the vibroscalpel.

The air was quickly cut from my lungs as his large hands tightened around my neck. I wasn't going to die. Not like this. Not before I knew what happened to my parents. And I needed to meet Bars someday.

I tried to kick him, but he had placed himself above me in such away that my legs were pinned to the metal ground. I reached up with one hand to try to pry his large hands away. That was really only meant as a distraction as my other hand reached out and grabbed the vibroscalpel. I was beginning to see spots in my vision. The last scene of Waters Reaching where Bars was speaking with the farmers in front of the lake came to mind.

I turned on the vibroscalpel and pushed it into the Bundu-Jo's temple and into his brain. He fell on top of me. I called on my white light to shield me as the Corruption lifted out of his ears. I pushed him away as I scrambled out from underneath him. I reached for the Aether Field Prototype only to discover it was no longer in my hood.

The Corruption surrounded me. They made small cuts in my light shield, but I was able to close the cuts before any could get in. I wouldn't be able to keep that up for long. I tilted my head to look behind me as I scrambled to sit up. The Aether Field Prototype was there. Lieutenant Tanpo had come around the corner and was crawling towards me. Her apricot light surrounded her and she pushed her shield outwards to encompass me. It pushed the Corruption away from me.

It allowed me enough time to grab the Aether Field Prototype and switch it on. I turned it to the Corruption. They tried to scatter, but they were caught in the aether field and the pink haze fizzled away. I turned it off.

"Are you all right?" Lieutenant Tanpo asked. She looked at my neck. She wouldn't be able to see the bruising through my fur, but I could feel the marks of the Bundu-Jo's large hands.

"The Corruption recognized me," I said. "The Corruption knows who we are."