I slink past, hating myself. There’s nothing I can do for the woman. I’m no doctor. And I certainly don’t want to catch what she’s got.

Tawni sits on the bed, breathing heavily. “Thanks,” she says, looking up at me.

“I’m good at kicking,” I say, trying to make a joke.

She gives me a courtesy smile, but I can tell she’s not up for humor right now. The thing with the woman really affected her. “What can we do for these people?” she asks, her light blue eyes questioning.

“Nothing for them individually,” I say. “But perhaps a rebellion could help us all.”

“I don’t know. It just doesn’t seem like more violence is the answer to anything.”

I know what she means. “The star dwellers should never have attacked the Moon Realm,” I agree. “That was the wrong way to go about things. But maybe my mom and dad can set things right. If we can just unite the two Realms like my father said, then maybe…” I trail off, unsure of where I’m going with it.

“Maybe it will make a difference,” Tawni finishes.

I shrug. “Maybe.” I don’t even convince myself. Everything seems so out of control—like a lost cause.

“Why were you asking Trevor about the guns?” Tawni asks.

My dark mood disappears as my focus returns to my thoughts from earlier. I lay back onto the bed, thinking furiously. Something jabs me in my lower back. “Oww!” I yelp, turning to the side to grab at the thing. My hand closes on the steel and I remove the gun from beneath my tunic.

Tawni lies down next to me and we both stare at the weapon, as I turn it over and over in my hands. It’s different than the gun I fired earlier. Older, marred by time, with scratches on the handle and barrel. And etched just above the trigger: Rose.

Tawni notices it at the same time as me and says, “It was your mom’s gun.”

I rub my fingers over the engraving, tracing the lines of each letter. “From the Uprising,” I say thoughtfully. It’s like she’s passing the torch to me. She’s done her part—now I have to do mine. I wonder how many times she’s fired this gun, how many times she’s killed with it.

“You would think all the guns would be old like this one,” Tawni says. She’s smart—Tawni. Not only a good person, but a real thinker.

“Exactly,” I say. “Something’s going on, and I think Trevor’s involved. That’s why he got so defensive when I asked him about it.”

Sitting up, Tawni reaches down and retrieves our packs from underneath the bed. “Can we eat somewhere else? This place is depressing.”

We take our packs with us, as we won’t be coming back to the medical ward to sleep again. On the quiet balls of our feet, we weave our way back through the beds, careful to avoid any reaching hands, and exit back into the shadowy cavern. I know it’s the middle of the day, but it always seems like night is falling in the Star Realm. The amount of electricity they’re rationed is unforgivable.

“Where should we go?” I ask. The thought of eating in the streets with the beggars isn’t ideal. But I also have no desire to go back to the military buildings—not yet.

“Are you starving? Or can we explore a bit, maybe find a better spot?”

I’m used to being hungry—I’ve been hungry my whole life.

We move through the streets, passing dozens of homeless people, who seem to be the majority. Although we should be paying attention to where we’re going, we don’t, making a left turn, then a right, then another left, zigzagging through the subchapter. Every street looks the same. Narrow. Dirty. Beggars. Stray animals. The smell is awful, but I’m getting used to it. I guess it’s what it’s like to be a garbage man—at some point you just adapt.

The next street is a light commercial district, although most of the shops are boarded up and empty. The sides of the buildings are covered with spray paint. Some of it’s pretty good actually, showing that even delinquents have talent. One in particular catches my eye, a massive, colorful mural of a red dragon. The message is dark, with the dragon breathing bright orange flames on a group of people, setting their clothes on fire before they can flee. Their expressions are filled with horror. I shiver. But most of it is just random scribbles, or obscene messages about someone’s mother, or where to go for a good time.

A couple of grizzly men light up cigarettes as we pass by, staring at us with dark eyes cast in shadow by their hats. The tips of their smokes appear bright against the dim backdrop. When I look back at them they remove their hats and I cringe as their fully tattooed faces are revealed, gleaming with metal piercings in their eyebrows, noses, lips, and chins. They laugh at me, deep and throaty, and I usher Tawni forward at double the speed.

We make another left and enter the narrowest alleyway of all. To our surprise, it’s deserted. After the other streets, which were jammed with beggars sitting shoulder to shoulder, this one seems peaceful, serene even. I was hoping for some kind of a big plaza, with high-backed stone benches and the soothing sign of a bubbling, decorative fountain, but I don’t think that exists in this world, so I stop.

“Want to eat here?” Tawni asks, reading my mind.

“It’s as good a spot as any, I reckon,” I reply, sliding my back down the wall. I look up and see the building rise three stories before connecting with the low cavern ceiling. All the buildings are built all the way to the top of the cavern, out of necessity, I expect. With a growing population and limited space, the star dwellers are forced to use every last square inch. I thought we had it bad in the Moon Realm, but at least we had space to spread out. The subchapter 14 cavern feels like a land of plenty compared to this foreign country. My heart beats rapidly as I realize how spoiled I’ve been.

Tawni slides in next to me, sitting close, our shoulders touching like the street beggars. We each open a pack and retrieve some wafers. I know they won’t satisfy my hunger, but at least they might stop the gnawing pain in my gut.

“You know, the star dweller army probably provides better food to the soldiers,” Tawni says.

“I expect so.”

“Maybe we can have dinner there.”

“Sounds good.”

We munch for a few minutes in silence, each lost in our own thoughts. Just as I’m finishing my third wafer, a sound breaks the silence. A cry, soft and pitiful, carries down the alley. It sounds weak and childish, like a baby or a small kid. Peering into the gloom, I see a boy, no more than five, his face red and tear-stained. I watch, slow to action due to my surprise, as the kid staggers forward and then collapses face first, barely cushioning his fall with his hands.

I spring to my feet and race to him, expecting the worst, like maybe he’s contracted a fast-killing disease, or been shot by some thug on the streets. Any number of atrocities seem like a viable option in this place. I hear the soles of Tawni’s shoes clapping the stone behind me as she follows.

When we get within a few steps of the boy, he miraculously springs to his feet, whoops, and then darts away, his small legs churning like the propellers on the boats in subchapter 19 of the Moon Realm.

“Hey! Wait a minute!” I shout, but the boy just keeps on running. I start to chase him, but stop when Tawni yells something behind me. Whirling around, I see her running back toward our packs. Past her a group of kids are whooping and hollering and—

—stealing our stuff.

“Get away from that!” I yell, following in Tawni’s wake. I realize where the kids came from when they leap on the wall, climbing it like spiders. Except it’s not the wall they’re climbing; rather, the rope ladders strung along the stonework.

Chapter Fourteen

Tristan