The Space of Hope

Part 1: Chapter 1

Day 6

I'm glad my family took this assignment. My mother is a lieutenant in the Air Force and my father is a colonel in the Navy. I think we were picked for this assignment because of those accomplishments. Colony 135 is an experimental space colony assigned to live in space for at least four generations. If this were to fail they would try again. We won't fail. I won't let us fail.

My mom yells, "Eirini! We have a meeting with the princess in five minutes! Get going!"

"Coming!" I grab my coat and run to the living room. The air conditioning in the hallways of Colony 135 is set to freezing so coats are necessary. My mom and dad are waiting at the door with irritated looks on their faces. "Sorry, I'm ready."

"Keeping a princess waiting leaves a bad impression," my dad says, shaking his head. His black hair is disheveled and his clothes are unkempt. My mom is the picture of elegance, her wavy hair cascading perfectly down her shoulders.

"I know," I sigh. "Why have we been called again?"

"I'm not sure. Something about the safety of the princess."

"That can't be good." We walk down the halls of the west side of the ship. Once we reach the east side, we take an elevator three floors up to the princess' rooms. I remember every twist and turn of the hallways. I know my family is here to protect the passengers from something, and if that something is dangerous, I will need to know these halls.

My mom knocks lightly on a large circular door. A few seconds later, the door slides open to reveal a panicked soldier. "Lieutenant, Colonel, this way please," he says hastily. The soldier leads us through the princess' rooms before opening another sliding door.

"Princess Sena Dalnim." My parents duck into a bow, and I quickly follow suit.

"Good afternoon, Lieutenant Calista Xenakis, Colonel Adonis Xenakis," the princess says, smiling. "I'm sorry to have disturbed you, but it is urgent. There was an attack at 22:00 in the Southern Wing on day 5, I was attacked by a masked figure and he attempted to stab me."

"That is absolutely terrifying!" I say the words before I can stop them from spilling forth.

Even though Princess Sena smiles at my comment, I can tell she is scared.

"I have a request for you," the princess says as she hands papers to my parents. "I have guards that protect me at all times, of course, but I need additional protection. Given your reputation and well-known expertise, I request your support as additional agents in protecting me from danger until we can get this sorted out."

"We'd be honored," my mother says immediately and my father nods.

"Wonderful!" Sena sighs in relief. To my surprise, she then turns to me. "Miss Eirini, I wonder if you may help me as well. We have a detective working to investigate who attacked me, and he requires an assistant. Sadly, he is not very trusting. So I have taken the liberty of finding a suitable assistant."

I smile and nod, but I don't know where she is going with this. It takes a second for me to realize. "Oh, you want... me to be the detective's... assistant?"

"Precisely." Before I can say anything she tells one of the guards to get the detective. "He is kind once you get to know him. But he is normally a bit cold."

The detective surprises me as he walks in. I thought he would be my parents' age, but he can't be much older than me. He has curly dark hair, an olive complexion, and brown eyes. He turns to me, and as his deep brown eyes assess me up and down, it feels as though he can see right through me. I shiver.

"This is Detective Zayn Orionis. Zayn, this is Eirini Xenakis. She will be your assistant."

"I do not require an assistant." The detective's tone is flat, and he stands up straight looking ahead at nothing. He puzzled me.

The princess' angelic voice turns stern for the first time. "I believe you do. If you do not find out who is hunting me like a stag, you will lose your station, just like your father."

He almost looks hurt. Almost. "You don't mean that, Sena."

"Yes, I do."

He stiffens. "Yes, princess," is all he says.

The princess sighs and her bright, alluring smile returns. "Right! With that all settled, you are dismissed. Thank you so much for your help. Eirini can help Zayn interview the suspects tomorrow.

Detective Zayn grumbles, and I wonder if I'll make it out alive tomorrow.