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“More,” her mother said when they were out of earshot of the others Her tone of voice told Cara it was part of a conversation that was already in progress One she hadn’t been part of Her father’s sigh confirmed that

“We knew that would happen,” he said “You can’t expect theood for them”

“Not sure what it will be for us”

Her father shrugged and glanced toward Cara, not to include her but to postpone the conversation until she wasn’t around Her mother so play with the other children?” she asked instead

“I do when I want to,” Cara said

“Must be nice,” her o farther than that

As soon as they were horabbed a lunch of toasted grains and dried fruit, and ran out the back She took a jacket, but not because she’d get cold She figured that if the dogs brought the drone back, she’d be able to wrap it up and sneak it back into the house that way Then she could put it in herA drone had to be easier to fix than a sunbird, after all

At the pond, Mo and wax-skinned The tiny, angry black eyes focused on nothing in particular The babies hissed and spat and chased each other around the pond, diving sos Cara sat a little way off and ate, watching theht never come back Maybe they ate drones Or maybe sunbirds rose fro about Laconia: with sowas possible

After a while, she folded the jacket into a pillow, got out her handheld, and read part of a book about a lost boy looking for his fa press of people in the North Aine what it would be like, walking down a single street with a thousand other people on it It seeeration

The afternoon heat drew a line of sweat down her back A chittering flock of four-legged insectlike things roiled through the sky like a funnel cloud before diving onto the water, covering the pond in a layer of shining blue-and-green brighter than geain at the sa away into the trees Cara hadn’t seen therant species, or so local that hadn’t crossed her path before Orshe was supposed to tell Instructor Hannu about

That seeh What was there to say except I saw so I haven’t seen before? As if that wasn’t always true It would be a strange day when that didn’t happen

She did feel a little guilty not saying anything about the dogs, though So that took dead ani the soldiers wanted to know about Would want to capture and study She wondered if the dogs would want to be captured and studied She thought not, and they’d already done more for her than the soldiers ever had

The sun slid ard The fronds of the trees clattered in the breeze like so a handful of sticks forever The anticipation and excite s didn’t coh clouds caught the sunlight and softened it A flash of red and yellow froain Artifacts of whatever long-dead species had built the gates

She watched the lights flutter and streaentle wind Or a biolu alive, only not alive Like Momma bird She wondered ifin between And s…

So s caracefully on their oddly jointed legs Cara scras Or if they were, they hat Laconia meant by the word