Dragon Pearl(86)
I spent the ride contemplating the red dust and chafing at the straps of my face mask. While the hover-car had its own filtering system, everyone wore masks anyway as a precaution. The rule I’d taken for granted my entire life felt stifling now that I had breathed freely on the Fourth Colony. I looked forward to the day when I could travel down this same road without worrying about dust-sickness.
At last the house came into view. Mom was waiting in front of the dome, wearing her own mask. The plumes of dust kicked up by the hover-car would have been visible from a long distance, and it wasn’t as though many travelers came this way.
The hover-car stopped. “I’ll wait here,” Seok said.
“You’re going to listen in anyway,” I said. I’d made a cursory check of my clothes and shoes, but I still hadn’t located the bug that I knew he’d planted on me. Was it revenge for my knocking him out, or simple pragmatism? Jun could find it easily—he probably already knew where it was—but I’d made a bet with him that I could locate it myself by the end of the day. “Did you call ahead?”
“I told her you were coming, but no more,” he said, unsmiling. “Some news needs to be delivered in person. You should be the one to tell her. Go.”
I opened the door, then hesitated. But I couldn’t put this off any longer—it would be unfair to Mom. I exited the hover-car, cradling the Pearl.
“You’re home,” Mom said, embracing me. Then she stepped back to look me over. Were those tears in her eyes, or were they just irritated by dust?
“Yes, and I brought the Dragon Pearl. Everything’s going to change now, Mom.”
Her eyes grew wide when I showed her what was in the sling.
“But there’s something else you need to know,” I said.
Just then Jun appeared, glowing white with phantom flames. He floated toward her, then stopped. “Mom?”
Her expression clouded for just a moment, and then, in typical Mom fashion, she collected herself. Her family was together once again, and that was all that mattered. “Come inside,” she said quietly. “Come inside and tell me everything.”
I glanced back at the hover-car. From within, Seok nodded. Then I took Mom’s hand and followed her into the dome.
Seok was going to have to wait quite a while, because we had a long story to tell. I knew he would give us the time we needed. Then Jun and I would begin our personal mission to visit all the Thousand Worlds together.