Yéeta Ku didn't dare sneeze when the suffocatingly sweet scent of Parde incense leaked into her nostrils the moment she threw open the door to her house. Even when one of the many scent bubbles that floated aimlessly across the main receiving room popped right in front of her face, she held her breath and pressed both her palm hard against her nose.

Ah, she thought as she waited for the irritation to subside, no earthquakes today!

"Ah San, Ah Rui." she called quietly. She let the bag she held in her other hand slip to the ground.

When its contents did not spill out as the bag slumped against the floor, Yéeta's inexistent smile bloomed to life. "I'm back from Merkat."

Yéeta raised an eyebrow at the silence that greeted her and figured that her aunt and her grandfather were now meditating.

It's been a long time since Ah San let go of his lif. A content grin touched her lips at the thought. "I'll not disturb them."

Yéeta took another quiet step inside and turned to shut the door, only for her to notice a hazy figure gracefully floating on the street across the house.

A prickle ran up her spine at the sight, and she had to consciously remind herself that ghosts were not allowed on Yéta One.

Her eyes watered the moment her gaze penetrated the swirling haze and landed on the woman that glared at her from across the wavy green and greener lines that formed the road.

Too bright! Yéeta blinked twice at the dense pink air that danced around her neighbor, barely able to keep her eyes from looking away from the blinding strands of starlight that floated off the woman's head and intertwined with the peach colored robed that garbed her pale skin.

The whole getup reeked of day-old matrimony.

"Yéeeetttaaaa." The woman dragged the name, a derisive smile slowly drawing against her lips as she slipped her hands into the large sleeves of her robe.

Yéeta let her hands fall to her side. She balled her fists and took in a breath to still the emotions that sent her heart pounding hard against her chest.

She sneezed.

The street shook and houses trembled.

The green and greener lines that wove the complex solidify-levator sigil that floated shuttles and people along the road shattered.

No head peeked out of their houses' windows as the road began the slow process of mending itself.

Miniature earthquakes were as common as the trouble Yéeta Ku's nose alone brought her and her neighbors had long given up on resolving every commotion that occurred in the once quiet neighborhood.

The expression of the woman across the street changed rapidly from shock to disdain, then metamorphized into something almost unrecognizable. It flickered about a dozen times amidst disgust and sympathy before settling on prideful.

Her smile widened a tad, wrinkling the corners of her eyes as she unhooked her hands and cupped them beneath her chin. "Don't tell me that at this age you still cannot control your lif."

"Càet, leave me be."

"Am I bothering you?" The woman giggled, a fan of pink aura shielding her face from view. "Well, I can't help it. Especially after someone announced that they had just arrived from Merkat. Isn't that the fictional Raider Starship?"

"Ye—" Yéeta coughed lightly when a gust of wind from inside the house wafted the Padre at her with full force. The so-called calming incense made the lining of her lips burn.

"I know that you are jealous of me, but there's no reason to bring Yéta One down." Càet tittered then walked off, her cheerful laugh resembling the gently chime of bells.

Yéeta did not smile. She kept her gaze on the floral patterns that were weaved into Càet's robe with her glittering white hair. The patterns that deemed her a wife.

Jealous, jealous, a squeaky voice whispered in Yéeta's ear, jealous that her husband was supposed to be yours.

Yéeta let go of her lif, imagining translucent tentacles extending from her forehead and feeling over every surface in sight.

Blood-red fruits rolled out of her shopping bag and sprawled on the floor behind her.

Without bothering to pick them up, Yéeta used her lif to fling them in the direction of the kitchen, before she herself stormed into her bedroom.

She did not see her grandfather or aunt on her way upstairs.

~

Yéeta stared at her grandfather quietly, her gaze solemn. She watched his hair rise and fall, up and and down motions that took his sky-blue hair soaring towards the ceiling then crashing to his shoulders.

Unlike the other times she saw Han Ku meditate, Yéeta did not admire the grey mixed in with her grandfather's hair to imitate clouds. She did not gaze at him in wonder and sigh twice more in admiration.

Instead, Yéeta dragged her gaze from her grandfather's pulsating hair and let it fall on the swords lying neatly across the table.

Her eyes burned. And not only because of the pungent odour that poured steadily out of the smoldering pot of Padre that sat just next to the weapons.

Yéeta knew that her aunt and grandfather had used the incense to hide the smell of steel from her, to keep her unknowing till the last moment.

They knew how much strong odours irritated her senses, so they didn't expect her to seek out its source.

Little did they know. . . Yéeta touched the tips of her fingers to the white cloth wrapped around her face then to the scarf she always wore. Its ends were wrapped tightly around her head to hide her hair.

She forced her gaze back to her grandfather.

He was looking at her now, his hair now the color of the night sky.

"Why?" she croaked, her eyes meeting his. "Why Ah San?"

"Ah Nee." For a moment, Han Ku looked pained. He took in a deep breath and extended his hands to the swords on the table.

He dragged his finger along each of their dim tips, causing faint sparks to run across the weapons.

Yéeta gasped when she felt her grandfather's lif thinly coat every steel blade, his dark hair shimmering with stars. "Ah San, you. . ."

Han smiled and withdrew his hands, folding them on his laps. "The Sun Sovereign's orders cannot be revoked."

"But you're old," Yéeta argued. "Your lif, it's dying. I can barely feel the strands. You can hardly control the swords now. . ."

"The Marauders are attacking, His Majesty's decree cannot be revoked. Every household must—"

"The Marauders are always attacking!" Yéeta shot to her feet. "I can't let you go to war in space, and against the Marauder's Nebulon of all star systems! You won't even get to be buried—"

"Yéeta!" Han shouted, then sighed. He gently patted the spot next to him. "You're already at marriageable age and you still act like a child."

Yéeta didn't say anything as she sat by her grandfather, her arms crossed as she glared at the floor.

"Yeta One needs all the able soldiers it can muster to survive."

"Yeta One," Yéeta winced at the name of their spaceship, then stared at her grandfather deeply. "It will survive without you."

"It is not that simple, Ah Ni." Gila Ku stepped into the room gracefully, links of armor draped over her arm and an aura of calm around her as her lif soared across the room and coiled around her niece in a tranquil manner. "Green and greener lines across the orbiter have been destroyed, so—"

"Ah Rui." Yéeta bowed her head slightly as she greeted her aunt. "You are in support of Ah San's decision?"

For a moment there was silence, before the woman let out a sigh, her obsidian hair darkening as she placed the armor in the table. "To disobey the Sovereign's decree is to seek death. . ."

Yéeta slowly got to her feet, her eyes downcast. "When will Ah San be leaving?"

"Tomorrow." Her aunt and grandfather answered together.

"I see." Yéeta said numbly and bowed twice to her family. "I'll be in my room," she moved to hug her grandfather, "don't wait for me. I won't be having dinner."

She hugged her aunt as she stumbled out of the room, and didn't look back.

I guess. . . this is goodbye. Yéeta had made up her mind. She wasn't about to let her grandfather green to his death.

~

Yéeta stared quietly at the short blade in her right hand and stifled a sob with her left. "Ah San, Ah Rui, forgive me."

Her trembling fingers shifted down the length of her hair, the gorgeous strands she had hidden since her parents' deaths and not seen since then.

It tickled her ankles and shined in the dark even when she wasn't channeling her lif through it.

Yéeta bowed deeply to the standing mirror in front of her, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Ah Mu, Ah Fu, forgive me. I brought you to your deaths."

Then the girl glared at her reflection. What she saw was not a gently soul with galaxies spun into her hair or a granddaughter ready to risk her life.

She saw a murderer.

Her hair that had ruined her family. It had caused the Sun Sovereign himself to bestow her the name Yeéta after the Yeta star and the orbiters that he ruled over.

Woven into each strand of Yéeta's hair was an accurate star map of the Sun Sovereign's territory. It showed accurate, real life depictions of Yeta's solar system and sourced Yéeta's lif through the power of uncountable stars.

And yet it was also because of this gift that the Sun Sovereign had accused Yéeta's parents of conspiring with the Marauders and had them executed.

Yéeta stumbled out of her room and walked slowly down the stairs, careful to be silent.

She stared at the front door for a moment before reaching out the handle and tugging it open.

"Life isn't fair." She raised the dagger and took a deep breath.

"Forgive me."

Yéeta walked onto the green and greener line road. "Zuzu, come out."

A bright blue light, the size of a firefly emerged from her shoulder.

What is it? the squeaky voice of the light laughed. Finally running away like a crybaby?

Yéeta ignored the zin's comment. "Denounce me as your master."

And why should I do that? You're too much fun to play with. Zuzu danced circles around Yéeta.

"I'm going to severe my lif."

There was silence.

You want to sneak into Merkat? It's glow dimmed to a flicker. You want to hide your identity. . . take your Ah San's place.

Yéeta only stared at the pulsating road, running her finger across the edge of the dagger. "I can get anywhere I want in Yeta, the stars are my domain. Males have their hair grow as they age, but the hair of women shorten with time. For my hair to be this long I have to be a man above one hundred. . . and that is impossible."

But women are allowed into the army! Zuzu cried frantically. You might kill yourself if you cut your hair.

"If His Majesty discovers that I'm alive, he won't spare my family."

Then you—

"You can't change my mind." Yéeta shut her eyes and imagined Merkat, the supposedly inexistent starship of the Raiders, knowing that the green and greener line road would sync with the coordinates of her hair.

"Zuzu, if you stay with me and I fail. . . our lives are linked by my lif, if it—"

Rest assured master, I have no intention of going down with you. But we both know nobody but you will take me as their pet.

Yéeta smiled, just as the road activated. "Good Zuzu."

~

six months later

Yéeta still felt a burn on her wrist, a stab in her heart and a twist in her lungs each time she took a breath.

When she tilted her head back she was just able to feel her hair brush the nape of her neck. It was so short, and she bore the pain for it.

It was a wonder that she hadn't died the moment she cut it, less surprising that her once luxurious hair had faded into a muddy brown and her lif could barely extend a metre.

"At least no more earthquakes." she laughed.

This greens, Zuzu protested dimly, you can barely control your lif, how can you fly a spaceship and control weapons at the same time.

"I'll manage," Yéeta pressed her fingers to her head in hopes of quelling the beast the fought in her skull. "The general asked for us."

For you! Zuzu sniffed and flew up to the ceiling. I'm the reason you're so popular among the Raiders. I'm the reason the general noticed your lif control skills!

"Okay, okay. It's all you. I'll get you a treat when I get back." Yéeta chuckled and shook her head, her short blade hanging off her waist as she leapt to her feet and left to the command centre.

"I wonder what mission I'm getting this time. . ." she thought to herself, suddenly feeling light and giddy. "The general wants to see me. . ."

Yéeta skipped down the halls while humming a tune.

~

This was not supposed to happen! Zuzu screamed in Yéeta's mind as a metre long sword pierced into the cockpit of the girl's fighter ship.

Why? Why? Why?! The zin cried, hovering over the sword now lodged in Yéeta's torso, pinning her body to her seat.

She couldn't get free.

"I had to save him. . ." Yéeta said quietly, her lips stained with blood as she stared blankly at the scene unfolding in front of her.

Spaceships zoomed in and out of deep space faster than her lif could track. Cold weapons were being controlled by the lif of numerous pilots, piercing and hacking away at both Raider and Marauder jets.

The stars glittered so brightly.

Yéeta coughed out a mouthful of blood then smiled, showing off her reddened teeth to her pet. "I have, no regrets."

"We are. . . close to fending off the invasion. We need, our general—"

The thought of the man she had spend months with warmed her heart, even with the absence of words between them and the utter lack of contact outside of the training grounds.

Somehow she couldn't just help herself. Not when a Marauder ship was sneaking behind the Raider's left flank with a sword floating by it, ready to be activated.

How could Yéeta have ignored the fact that the only man she had come to care about was about to die?

She suddenly laughed, startling the anxious Zuzu into stillness. "I didn't. . . I didn't even know when I moved."

Yéeta closed her eyes and smiled again. "But it, was worth it."

Yéeta! Zuzu cried as it's master went limp.

~

"It hurts."

"It hurts so much."

Yéeta's raspy voice filled the infirmary of Raider HQ.

She had yet to open her eyes, but for the first time in days, she was awake.

She felt a hand grab hers and went silent for a moment.

"Ge-neral?" She whispered, immediately recognizing the large callused palm.

"Why?" He asked back, his fingers tightening over her own. "You didn't need to risk your life. . ."

"A good soldier doesn't mind taking a sword for his general."

"But you are not a soldier, you are—"

"So you know." Yéeta made an effort to peel apart her eyelids so that she could catch his expression.

The first thing she noticed was how haggard the man had become. The second thing though, was her lif.

She gasped when General Kun Hé passed his fingers through her hair. It now reached her hips.

"I had my doubts." he told her, then fell silent. "There is no Yé Ku in the annals of the Ku family."

Yéeta swallowed back her dread. "Then why did you—"

"You have excellent lif control, and because of your bravery, we managed to defeat the Marauders' invasion once and for all."

Yéeta slowly sat up, looking at Kun carefully, without blinking. She took in the solar flares that erupted in his golden hair. "Is that all?"

"His Majesty has learnt of your identity and ordered for your execution." Kun slipped his hand out off hers.

"And you are to be my executioner?" she laughed bitterly in understanding and clasped her hands together. "Do it then, I don't see why you kept me in alive in the first place."

"The Sovereign's decree cannot be declined." The general stood up and placed his hand on the hilt of the sword.

Yéeta shut her eyes and bowed her head, a tear silently slipping down her right cheek. "You thought me not to fear death."

She waited in agonizing silence for the subtle sound of lif merging with steel.

"The Sovereign's orders can't be denied, so I don't know why I can't. . ."  he said quietly. "I can't do this."

Yéeta's eyes shut open when she felt his hands cup her face.

"Yé Ku, be my wife." General Kun told her seriously. "Maybe its because you saved me, but I can't let you die."

"I can get His Majesty to rescind his order. Marry me."

"What?" Yéeta's eyes went wide. "Why must I marry you?"

Kun Hé pressed a thumb to her lips, his blue eyes shimmering. "Do you not want to?"

"I. . . I—" Yéeta gulped.

"By right I should have no hesitation to kill you," he sighed loudly. "So I need to understand why."

"And me marrying you is the best way to do that?"

Yéeta didn't let him answer, a grin splitting her face in two. "Since it's like that, I have no choice."

Kun Hé smiled back at her and leaned forward to press a chaste kiss against her lips.

Yéeta hummed in delight.

And just at that moment a firm knock sounded on the door to the infirmary. "His Majesty arrives!"

About the author:

Olly Wesley aka _logogriph is a writer of Science Fiction, Fantasy and the occasional star-crossed romance. His works are centrally based off alternate possibilities of Earth's current timeline, whether taking a look at countries as a whole or from the perspectives of individual people. He believes that the worlds spun in his head are more interesting than the happenings in his day to day life, and hopes that others can find an escape in them as well. He is in the process of editing his very first completed novel 'Cipher Code' and has already began working on its sequel, 'Code Bound'. His short story 'Overlord' was selected for the previous anthology in this series—an accomplishment which he is very proud of.

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