"We have a lot of power as ambassadors for the World Alliance. We can help rebuild the world however we'd like. We need to make sure we are creating a world that reflects our beliefs instead of the beliefs of men from the past. We can't have another empire like Roberts and Cooper tried to create. We have to have one that is built for the people by the people."

-Ava Becker

TEMPEST

I had been far too distracted by Yuri to really notice the Mayflower's size and greatness; but now that my parents and I have climbed aboard, past the halls and halls of safety mandated vaults and pressure stabilization containers, I shelf my anger long enough to take in the ship around me. From the outside, it looks like we've been placed inside a gigantic bullet some sick God plans to shoot into the stars to tear my universe apart. But once we pass the sterile pressure vaults, we enter into an entirely different vibe.

Mom groans and Dad breathes a little uneasily, but I feel like a hotshot walking through the ship now. The decor is all high-class and glamorous. Rich golds and reds and purples paint the wide hall, and the marble flooring is so polished, I can see myself in the reflection. "Okay, this is pretty awesome," I say, but my parents don't seem as convinced. Both of them look tense, and for the first time in a while, they have nothing to say. Maybe it's because I'm finally not arguing with them about condemning me to this trip through space, but I'm certain that's not it. They're uncomfortable. To the point of silence.

Whatever. If they're not going to enjoy the fancy atmosphere of my prison, then at least I'll appreciate it. Pieces of art recovered from around the world hang on the walls, filling the crimson space between each of the gold doors where passengers will sleep. Guards from the various countries that are represented on this voyage—Japanese, Chinese, South African, British, Greecian, Israeli, Canadian, French, Italian, and American—stand on either side of the hall to greet us, unarmed for moving day. They bow their heads and smile back at me as I strut through the hall. I suddenly wish I had come dressed in the fanciest dress I could find, so that at least I could have a few moments of escapism when I didn't have to remember that I am Tempest Becker, prisoner of spoiled-brat-emperor-to-be Yuri Oshiro's affection.

Toward the end of the hall, a soldier steps out of the line, and salutes us. "Becker Family," he addresses us.

"At ease," Dad replies.

The soldier—a young man with dark skin who wears the emblem of Appalachia on his uniform—relaxes and after a moment of standing perfectly straight for my parents, breaks into laughter. Dad opens his arms for the soldier and embraces him, patting him on the back a couple of times before letting go. This must be someone they know from back in Hicksmon, I think, but I don't recognize him. It's been a while since I was in Hicksmon, though.

"How are you Neo?" Dad asks.

Upon the question, I remember the soldier. The name is familiar, and as soon as I place it, his face finds its match in my memory. It's an old memory from when I was little. This soldier was a boy then, only five years older than me, and he and his twin sister Oriana babysat us in Hicksmon. Esther and I ran around the then newly developed Hicksmon and occasionally stopped our running to dance with our parents and our friends after Celia Rivera and Julian Guzman got married. As Esther and I jumped up and down to the music, Oriana and Neo came to take our hands and lead us in more rhythmic movements. Neo took my hands in his and hopped back and forth with me. I don't remember anything else but the childish laughter that bubbled out of me and the smile that shone brightly on his dark face.

"I'm doing great," Neo says. "I'm nervous about leaving Earth, but the possibilities awaiting us on Janus were too much to pass up."

"How did your sister take the news you were leaving? What's her name again? Ori—?"

"Oriana. She was upset at first, but she understood. Our aunt Rachel nearly bit my head off, but after a couple of days, she understood too. She's an astronomer, as you probably remember, so she said she would keep an eye on us. She has a bunch of telescopes at home, and she has one locked on Janus. She was actually really excited for me after it set it."

Neo's smile is unfading, which both makes me want to smile with him and punch him in the face. I want to smile, because Neo's wide face transforms from intimidating to disarmingly cute with the expression. I want to punch him, because he's only adding to my parents' argument that this voyage is something most people would be ecstatic to join.

Neo's eyes fall from my dad's face, down to mine. "Oh my, is this Tempest? Wow, the last time I saw you you were, what? Like, three years old?"

"Yeah, about that. How have you been?" I ask. Small talk is polite. One of the many lessons I learned in my years of growing up the child of two diplomats.

He smiles widely and breathes a sigh of relief. "Great. I can't believe I'm really on the Mayflower right now and helping fine ambassadors such as yourselves."

"Oh, stop Neo," Mom says. "We've known you for years, so you can drop the formal nonsense."

"Good," he says, breathing an even deeper sigh of relief. We move to the side of the hall to allow other passengers to pass through with their luggage. "I've actually been assigned to assist your family specifically, so I'm glad I can let my guard down a little," Neo says.

"Wait... you've been assigned to us?" Mom asks.

He nods.

Mom looks at Dad in anger. He closes his eyes, apparently exasperated, and says, "I'll talk with Oshiro."

"What?" I ask.

Ignoring me, Mom continues her conversation with Dad. "We will both talk to him. He needs to understand that things have to be different here. He promised."

"I know."

Dad turns to Neo who appears just as, if not more, confused than I am. "Neo, will you show us to our rooms? My wife and I need to talk with the emperor and the other ambassadors quickly, and we'd like to drop off our luggage first."

Neo's smile is wiped from his face as he springs into action. "Of course, follow me," he says.

The familiar soldier leads us about ten more feet down the hall and pulls a ring of keys with a retractable reel attached to his belt. He unlocks a gold door—room 356—and opens it for us. I begin to step into it, when he stops me. "You have your own room, Ms. Becker—sorry, Tempest."

My parents throw their luggage into the room, give me a quick, almost incoherent salutation, and then leave me standing in the empty doorway to their room with Neo. He closes the door behind them, a lonely key resting in his palm. "I didn't get a chance to give this to them. It's their room key."

"I'm sure they'll figure out soon that they need it. I'll hold onto it."

"Thanks." He steps to the next doorway, room 358, and unlocks the door for me. "This is your room." Before I can step into the doorway, Neo holds his arm across the doorway to stop me. "It was prepared specially for you."

"Okay," I say with a roll of my eyes, but when he releases his blockade and I enter the room, I see why he wanted to give me a heads up.

First of all, the room is over-the-top glamorous. Where the hall is overtly regal, this room is sophisticated, modern, and feminine. Instead of gold accents, gleaming silver reflects the light from the pink crystal chandelier hanging from the center of the room. The far wall has a bay window to the outside, which must be crazy thick, since soon the outside will be outer space. A window seat as long and wide as a single bed stretches out beneath the window, and a desk equipped with a journal and pens is positioned against the left wall, where a framed watercolor illustration of my name hangs prominently. A huge bed, covered in frilly pink fabrics that must also have silver fiber in them, because they reflect the light, waits for me to throw my luggage on in the middle of the room. That is, if there weren't hundreds of red roses covering the bed and every other surface in the room, for that matter.

"Oh my god," is all I can say.

The doorway is wide enough that Neo can slide past me, lifting my luggage as he steps ahead of me. He sets my two suitcases beside the bed and lifts an envelope from the rose-covered bed. "This is for you," he says, handing me the envelope. "Would you like me to do something about all these flowers while you read it?"

"What is there to do?" I ask.

He shrugs. "There's a bathroom there to your right. I could put the roses in the bath water to keep them fresh until I can find a few dozen vases."

I laugh a little and he smiles again. The glow of the pink room and the red roses makes it look like he's blushing. "Sure," I say. "Whatever works."

Neo starts gathering up the roses as I open the envelope. Inside is a note, on the front of which is a print of the watercolor illustration of my name. I lift the flap of the stationary to read what—you guessed it—Yuri has written for me:

Dear Tempest,

I know that embarking on the Mayflower's voyage to Janus must not have been in your plans; however, I really do appreciate that you made the choice to include this trip and me in your life. I hope that we can get to know each other better. I believe we have a lot in common. I'm anxiously awaiting the first chapter of our love story.

-Yuri Oshiro

"Ew," I say as soon as I've finished reading the note, forgetting that I'm not alone to be my truly undiplomatic self. Luckily, Neo missed my gut reaction while placing my ridiculous load of flowers in the tub.

"What was that?" he asks, poking his head out of the room.

"Nothing, just clearing my throat."

Neo laughs. "Sure."

"Aren't you supposed to be taking care of me by order of Yuri Oshiro?" I ask, unable to hide even a little of the sarcasm in my voice.

Neo bites the inside of his cheek with a little grin. After a few moments, he finally comes back with, "Aren't you supposed to be happy to be here?"

I can't help but smile. "Guess we're both bad at our jobs."

"Hey, speak for yourself. I'm over here with thorns in my skin."

"They're not even de-thorned?" I ask. I move to the window seat, where a whole other ton of roses waits to be transported into the bathtub and lift a rose from the bunch. One of the thorns catches on my skin and draws blood. "Damn," I say under my breath.

"Oh, hey, watch out," Neo says. Too little, too late, I think. He lifts a case from his back pocket and rushes over to me. A first-aid case. He pulls a band-aid from the case, and wraps it around the tip of my finger.

"Thank goodness you were here with that band-aid. That was a real gusher," I say.

He smiles. "You're going to really make my job of taking care of you difficult, aren't you?" he asks.

I brush the hair from my shoulder and extend my hand to him, realizing now how close our bodies are. "Tempest Becker. It appears we haven't officially met yet. I am the daughter of Ava and Ian Becker, and I am almost always a smart ass. Nice to meet you."

He scoffs and shakes my hand. "Neo Sanders. I am almost always in the mood for smart assery. Glad to meet you."

As we shake hands, a little longer than we need to, I feel a small burst of excitement in my heart. Uh oh, I think. This could get complicated.