Page 33 (1/2)

“I deserve to think about him every day and suffer for what happened”

She squeezes my hand “We humans, the ones the Kraa worked on, we had a technique We said we’d reserved a certain period of tis we can’t change The rest of the ti as well as we could despite our circumstances”

“Did that work?” I frown She said we, and I want to follow up on that later, but for now all I can think about is my brother and the memories

“Not for everything But even a little bit helps” She strokes my arm

“And that applies to me how?” My voice is still stiff

“Do you really think you are honoring hissubpar work? Would he wish this for you or your planet?” She pauses “Maybe you don’t need to punish yourself constantly, especially if it puts others at risk Think of him each rotation once, and the rest of the time, allow yourself to put the ate yourself”

The idea is like a bolt of lightning Never once have I considered allowing myself not to suffer at these memories The concept that I could put down the pain ofthat I blink

“Perhaps,” is all I say to her, though

She sighs

“You e the topic, and I do want to learn about her life and experiences

“Oh, they made more than one ofup “Many of their so-called prototypes failed and were eliminated” She looks up at er and pain

“I assumed as much” My voice is somber

“They’d bunk several of us together and have us train together” Her voice is contemplative “Sometimes we’d compete to see as best at tasks They didn’t want us to join forces, but they learned that huhs, a sound with no humor “Their allowances for us were based solely on monetary value and survival”

“Where are the others?” I stroke her arm

She ss and turns her head “I don’t know They were all sold before I was” Her voice cracks, and she wipes her eyes “Now it’s just me” Whatever happened to the other humans, she’s clearly in pain