In the few seconds of distraction that they had gained from the punch, Lena and Finn had managed to climb on the creature's back and rode off with Kassiopeia.

"Thanks for the rescue!" said Lena, dodging from branches that came flying towards them as the neconox dashed by trees and scrubs without a halt in sight.

"My pleasure! I zought we should at least say goodbye before you go!" she let out a low-pitched laugh.

Kassiopeia sat near the black creature's shoulder blades, and in the middle of its spine sat Finn, trying to hold on to the trembling body beneath him, while Lena clasped Finn from behind. She had her body pressed against his back, her head tucked in safety. For the time being, Finn got all scratched up from leaves and sticks slapping his face.

"We vill be at ze house soon. You vill be sae."

Minutes later they had come as far as Finn and Lena had come after one and a half days of walking.

They reached the trunk of the elderly tree and climbed its ladder without hesitation. With one hand on the ladder and one foot on the grass, Kassiopeia turned her upper body to look behind, into the dark. The boy could not have followed at their speed.

"Is anyone injured?" asked Finn as they had all found their seats in the living room.

Lena and Kassiopeia shook their heads.

"Good. That was too close! Thank you, Kassiopeia."

"Yes. Eez okay." She was calm like an undefeatable warrior.

"Who was he? Was he really willing to kill us both for one week's ration?"

"His name is Arrakis," said Lena, "and he is not after us for food."

Finn looked surprised. "You know that psycho?"

"Unfortunately, yes. He is a member of the royal family."

"Perfect," said Finn, and, with sarcasm written on his face, looked at Kassiopeia. "He found his queen."

"They are not actually royal," said Lena, whereupon Finn thought to himself that Kassiopeia wasn't either"—but they sure act like it. On Pluviam they are the richest and most despised family. They use their high stand to order commands, making the life of the poor a living hell. The military is roughly divided between KSP and that family."

"If he has such wealth, why does he live on Pluviam? And why is he working the duty of a guard?"

"His father enjoys bathing in the misery of other people's lives, and where else is a better place to rear sad sorrows than Tempestas; the poorest city in our solar system."

Kassiopeia nearly lost her nerves right there, but she kept quiet.

"He should have stayed in Tempestas if his joy comes from watching poor people live a poor life." Finn walked in circles with his hands behind his back. "What is it he wants from us?"

Lena shrugged. "All I know is that he and his family are very bad people. Arrakis' father is a most diabolic man, finding pleasure in ruining those who give him the slightest opportunity, and do worse to those he hates."

"Got it. But do we need to be punished with death for breaking in?"

"Can I say somezing now?" Kassiopeia had her arms and legs crossed as she leaned back on her sofa. "You told me dat you stole somezing when you broke ze law. Maybe he wants it back."

"Why would he care about the hard drive? It got nothing to do with him."

"Sometimes ze people do crazy zings for even crazier reasons."

Lena chewed her bottom lip. "I don't know Finn, maybe she's right. What if he doesn't want you to leak the truth?"

"Then he will have to learn how to handle disappointment."

"If it is true, that the hard drive is what he's really chasing; can't we give him what he seeks? For the sake of our lives?"

"Negative."

"Finden," said Kassiopeia, "you arr starting a war beyond your ema-gination. Deez boy vill not give up until you arr dead."

"And I would rather die than give up my mission. And my name is Finn!"

He stormed out of the room and up to the roof.

"It eez ze stubborn men, filled wiz pride, who always start ze war."

"Finn is not proud. But stubborn he is."

After talking to Kassiopeia for some hours, Lena found out more about her background. Kassiopeia had lived on Kepler until she was in her early twenties, and that it was the ill-suited behavior of humankind that drove her away. Kassiopeia had long given up on human kindness and honesty, and every apparent truth she found to be a scandal shaped her plan to leave.

"Zey did not allow us simple people to leave just like dat, especially not to a planet in solitary, so I did it in secret."

"How did you get away with it?" Lena's ears were glued to Kassiopeia's lips.

"Same as you!" she bursted into a rich laughter, "I stole a space vehicle. KSP noticed me leaving, but zey zought I was going to die in ze space, zey expected zeir problems to just die! Funny hoomans. I am still alive! Ha!"

"That is so brave! And you have lived here ever since?"

"Yes. I found peace here, and I stopped zinking about ze hoomans a long time ago. I was verry surprised to find you stranded on my planet."

"We were surprised to find you, too. But we were lucky to have found each other."

"You are ze nicest hooman I have ever met. Honest and sweet. Eez everyone on Pluviam like dat?"

Lena giggled and shook her head. "Don't you ever get lonely here?"

"Lonely? No. My kingdom eez my friend. Ze nature and all ze animals arr my friends."

"All? What about the bad animals?"

"Zere arr no bad animals. All live in peace."

"How can that be? The neconox, for example, lives to kill."

"No honey. Hoomans live to kill. Ze neconox only defends itself. If you meet it wiz peace, it vill be nozing but a big sweetheart. Ze world can be cruel, but we can still decided to be good."

"Finn said something similar not too long ago."

"I believe dat Finden has a good heart. He eez just—"

"At war with himself." Lena nodded and removed herself from the chair. "I should go talk to him."

Lena had almost gone out the door when Kassiopeia said to her, "I zink ze boy needs some space right now. He eez confused, and you can't tell him what to feel." 

After examining Lena's face and the gloom it tried to veil, Kassiopeia assured her that her friend would be fine and she shall not worry so much. After their talk, Kassiopeia went to bed, and Lena tried to do the same to relax her muscles, sore from having walked for days.

That night she lay awake, unable to retire her head until morning. She kept turning her head, to stare at Finn's empty bed, and for the present, she pondered about his performance.

"He says I should make a decision whether I am happy or upset, but he himself acts just like that sometimes. Hope lets him shine bright, but when he is upset, he is dark as the night. He can change from light to dark as quickly as a switch turns the light on and off."

She thought about herself confronting him in the woods, and his response, that she had nothing to do with his behavior. She was troubled to believe it as true, even so, she wanted not to think he broke his promise and lied.

She knew that Finn sought to find a lost spaceship, but she did not know what made it so important.

"Is he truly trying to save the passengers, or is there more to it?" she said, impossible for anyone else to hear. 

"What causes him to be at war with himself? What are the two sides in his head fighting about? Do I stay out of it, or do I help him? Do I not matter to him? But why, if I have done nothing wrong as he says? Was he lying? Could it be that I am at fault for something I haven't acknowledged yet?" she asked herself ridiculously. 

"Am I to blame for his pain after all?"

The house was hushed as if no souls ever roamed its rooms.

Lena found no rest. She could only hear his name on repeat in the back of her head and saw his eyes when closing hers. His eyes were what she envisioned the ocean to look like.

"Finn——Is he asleep? Or perhaps not? Should I bother him?"

She felt she had to, and on quiet toes, she walked upstairs.

The candles were unlit. Finn was laying on the roof's lawn, facing the sky. He looked relaxed now and less tempered, but from her perspective, she could not tell if his eyes were opened. She wanted to talk to him, but seeing him so calm, she had given it some thought and believed her words could await his approach to her.

Lena intended to make her first step to head back downstairs, but her foot creaked the floor.

"You don't have to leave," said Finn without turning.

"I didn't know you were awake."

Lena stood at the stairs, unsure whether she should enter the roof. When Finn sat up straight and turned to look at her, she saw his warm smile and knew she was welcomed.

"How are you?" she asked as her bare feet touched the grass.

After hesitation, he said, "I'm not used to giving an honest answer to that particular question. But I promised it to you, so—I suppose, the truth is——I'm not doing so good."

It did not come as a surprise, still, Lena bequeathed the raw emotional sense of sympathy and dedicated her wholehearted attention to him.

Pleasantly surprised, she accepted an invitation to take place beside him.