Mission Cure

CHAPTER TWO - M:FAC/1 - JACE

JACE

Charlie wasn't a very good liar. In fact, Jace didn't know if this was his first attempt. The man began to sweat profusely as he told the group that Rhodes was busy in a meeting. He even pulled at the front of his shirt and asked everyone if they were feeling hot.

Jace tried helping him out by confirming that it did feel a little warm - lie - and then made a joke about how it might be a good thing if the electricity went out again, because then it would return to a normal temperature, which nobody found amusing.

Dreary watched him with a knowing expression but said nothing. Instead, she handed the baby back to her mother without breaking eye-contact with him, then gestured for Jace to follow her out of the Den. And he knew why.

While the rest of the room was settling into their nightly routine and forgetting - for the moment - what had happened with the ship, Dreary wasn't buying any of it. And she knew exactly who would tell her the truth, since Jace could never deny her a single thing.

As kids, he would give her the last bowl of her favorite cereal, even if he was still hungry and the only other choice was strawberry oatmeal - yuck. Or when they would make blanket tents in the Den and she always wanted hers to be blue, so he would end up with a pink and purple tent, whatever. It never really mattered to him, and it made her happy.

Jace looked around for her father, hoping Charlie didn't see the two of them escape to the Kitchen, considering Jace was supposed to be keeping their secret. But he needn't worry. Charlie was busy with the twins who were asking why they couldn't have berry ice-cream and peanuts for dinner (since it was practically the same as a glass of milk and a peanut butter sandwich - something they were always allowed to eat). It was a good argument, and Jace watched Charlie try to fumble around the logic.

Satisfied that their exit was in secret, Jace followed Dreary to the Kitchen.

"What actually happened?" she asked when they were near the wall with the refrigerators. She opened one and debated between the only three juices they ever had - apple and orange. (And tomato, which really shouldn't count.)

Jace tried his best to act like he didn't know what she was talking about - he really did want to keep his promise to Charlie.

But all Dreary had to do was give him her look, that cute little disbelieving scowl that told him she could see right through his facade. "Come on, Dad never lies. Because when he does, it's way too obvious. You guys are hiding something."

Sighing and glancing around to make sure nobody was close enough to hear them, he decided to tell her the truth. He wouldn't be able to keep it from her for long, anyway. It wasn't even worth trying. "Fine. We couldn't find the General anywhere. Your dad even tried calling him, and no answer."

"That's never happened before," she responded.

A chill wandered up Jace's arms. She was right.

"There are literally only two reasons he wouldn't answer," she calculated. "Either something happened to him, or he's on another ship."

"Or his phone isn't working," Jace added.

"Oh, yeah. That's true." She thought about that. "For the first time ever, though."

"Right."

Roslava came into the room then with her entourage of little girls. Nikita was telling her mother to get her a snack, all the while grabbing at her dress.

"Nyet!" Roslava scolded her. "That's very rude."

"Pleeeeeese!" Nikita added in a sugary sweet voice.

"Otleechna," Roslava told her. "Much better."

The woman was a warrior. Even at eight months pregnant, she handled three little girls under the age of four with the ease of a drill-sergeant, hitching little Anni onto her hip and telling Nikita and Yrel to sit at the table and wait patiently. The two girls obeyed.

Roslava gave Jace and Dreary an apologetic look. "Izvinee. They are getting tired," she explained before going back to her task of feeding the girls.

There were drink vending machines and tiny kitchenettes in each of the housing apartments, otherwise known as 'Chambers'. But if you wanted a real meal, you had to come to the kitchen. Everyone was responsible for restocking it when necessary. Pretty soon, this room would be full of people cooking and milling around. And taking up the tables.

Dreary decided on orange juice. She found some cheese and crackers, as well. The cheese was actually made from powdered cream, but it was still pretty good. Jace found some leftover macaroni and cheese with broccoli - his favorite - and reheated it in one of the many microwaves before following Dreary from the Kitchen.

In silence, they headed in the same direction, not needing to discuss their destination. It was where they always ate their dinner together - away from the crowds, in Viewing Room 7. All along the side of the ship were little cabins where you could close the curtain, find a comfortable sofa, and see the stars and beyond through a giant window. The view rarely changed as they traveled to the next galaxy and - hopefully - a New Earth.

"So, what's Dad gonna do, besides lie to everyone?" Dreary asked, dryly.

Jace took a bite of his dinner, chewed and swallowed. "He already sent a quick e-mail to the rest of the Fleet. He'll get responses later tonight. Maybe one of them knows where Rhodes could be. Or maybe they'll know what's going on with our systems."

Unfortunately, M:FAC/1 only had two residents who were capable of fixing the ship. One of them was Adrian, Roslava's husband - and he was on M:FAC/3 right now working to streamline their recycling mechanisms the way he had already done for their own ship. And the other person was General Rhodes. One man was missing, and the other wasn't due back for a week when all the ships were planning to link up for their yearly Halloween Party.

Linking the ships took a lot of planning and careful calibration. It was only done for the purpose of socializing with the other families, transferring goods, or when one ship needed help.

Which was hopefully not the case for M:FAC/1...

"Should we maybe try looking around for him?" Dreary asked through a mouth full of cracker and cheese.

Jace shook his head. "Your dad's already planning on doing that. As soon as he gets the boys down for movie time, he'll check the entire ship."

Dreary watched him as his expression turned from serious to amused. "What?" she asked. "Why are you smiling?"

Again, he shook his head. "Nothing."

She pursed her lips and widened her eyes.

"Don't look at me like that," Jace told her. Because it works every time.

She simply waited.

Finally, he told her. "I'm supposed to be keeping you busy while your dad figures everything out. For some reason, he thought I could hide the truth from you all night."

"Because I'm so sweet and demure and never ask questions," she told him in a serious tone, taking another bite of cheese.

"Yeah," he chuckled. "That."