The room erupted into sounds of surprise and disbelief, while Tausson stared blankly ahead in shock.

"What's a blood walk?" Tierney asked, having to shout into Lutari's ear to be heard.

"He has to weapons spar with Rasmus, and he has to win."

Tausson looked up and met Tierney's gaze. The fear in his eyes froze her heart. "What if he loses?" she asked, not looking away.

"He's no longer Squad." Lutari spoke as if it were a fate worse than death.

Tierney remembered the pride Tausson had worn when speaking of the Squad. Perhaps to him death would be a better fate than no longer being a part of that mission.

"The Chief still has to approve it, though," said Inlan, leaning in to be heard.

This is all because of me, Tierney thought, unable to pry her eyes from Tausson's face. What have I done?

Chief Raleth raised his arms and the room fell silent. "The sentence proposed by Protection Officer Rasmus, First of the Cosmic Vessel Irral, is a harsh one," he said, though there was nothing in his tone or expression to make Tierney think he believed his own words. His face was as hard and unrevealing as a military general's should be.

"Yet," he continued, "the charges are also grave."

The room held its breath, waiting for his decree.

"I approve the sentence," he said. "The blood walker has two weeks to prepare."

Protests and outbursts sounded from every quarter. Chief Raleth spun around and went back the way he had come, with Tausson trailing behind, his head still held high.

* * *

Tierney lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.

After the trial -- or whatever that had been -- was over, Lutari and Inlan had filled her in on the details of how the blood walk worked. Normally sparring was without weapons of any kind, or with padded practice tools. A referee was present to ensure the match didn't get too violent, and it ended when one of the competitors stepped foot outside the circle.

A blood walk was different, because both Rasmus and Tausson would be able to choose a real weapon, but they couldn't know in advance which the other would select. There was also no referee, so it could get pretty brutal, although it did end the same way as a spar -- unless one of them died first. And even though Inlan assured Tierney that only a few blood walks in Squad history had ended that way, the knowledge brought her little comfort.

If Tausson won, he would be cleared of the charges and exchange rank with Rasmus, becoming commander of the Irral again. If Rasmus won, Tausson would be dismissed from the Squad. Not only would this be a heavy blow to his personal identity and pride, but because the Squad's mission of saving threatened species and finding new Asteroid Mates was such an integral part of saving the Relicans themselves, anyone who was discharged from the Squad was viewed as an outcast among society, and shunned as a traitor. Even though they were technically available to be assigned a pair, eligible Relicans often wouldn't accept them.

Tierney covered her face with her pillow. She knew all this wasn't really her fault. Tausson was an adult and responsible for his own actions. But she couldn't deny that he'd taken those actions -- committed crimes -- because of her. And being even indirectly responsible for his downfall made her feel nauseous.

She got out of bed and looked out the window. Apparently the cart and the other Squad vessels were out there somewhere, nearby, but she hadn't seen any evidence of them -- the only windows she'd seen were the ones in her rooms, and neither faced the right direction. Although she wished she could at least see the cart, the sight of Jupiter, now slowly sailing past her room, served as a welcome distraction. Had anyone on the cart been able to see it? Or did the manufactured atmosphere keep it hidden? Though she'd obviously seen pictures of the planet before, up until this moment she wouldn't have been able to say what color Jupiter was. Now, seeing its bright red eye staring back at her amid swirling, cake-like layers of brown, blue, and cream, Tierney didn't think she would ever forget.

Earth is the planet I need to remember, she thought. Jupiter still existed, intact, as it had been for billions of years. But Earth? Her home planet was now essentially extinct, nothing more than a cracked, molten, barren wasteland that may never recover.

The soft click of her door handle pulled her out of her bleak train of thought.

"Who's there?" she demanded.

Didn't I lock the door? Do I even know how to lock the door?

Although she preferred sleeping naked, she wasn't comfortable enough to do so on this ship. Still, she grabbed the blanket off her bed and began to wrap it around her nightgown -- a silky, scant affair that had been a gag gift from Clementine for her last birthday, and the only night clothes she owned. She didn't even remember packing it, but she had been pretty distracted -- that being her last day on Earth and all. Plus, she'd thought Tausson was dead at the time.

When she turned back to the door, she had to stifle her cry of joy.

"Tausson!" she whispered. Dropping the blanket, she rushed towards him, desperate to feel his arms around her.

"I've been so worried," she said, her face pressed to his chest. "That trial was ridiculous, putting your fate in Rasmus's hands. Anyone can see he despises you."

He didn't answer, and she suddenly realized he wasn't returning her embrace. Pulling away, she saw his face was set in a grimace.

"What's the matter?" she asked.

He gave her a quick but pained smile as he extricated himself from her loosening grasp and moved to stand by her window.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, staying by the door.

"My sentry owed me a favor," he said. "I covered for him once when he got caught with some contraband diamond wine. He doesn't know where I am though."

"Can't you just convey in here using your mechasuit?"

Shaking his head, he said, "Site to site conveyance is meant for longer distances than that. Its accuracy is diminished the smaller the jump."

He wasn't looking at her. He was looking at the floor, at the planet outside her window, at his hands, but not at her.

Trying to keep the anxiety out of her voice, Tierney asked, "Why are you here?"

"Carterra told me what happened with your room. I had to see you," he said, meeting her gaze, but only for a moment.

"Then see me." She took a step toward him.

He scrambled back, almost falling onto the bed.

"Why are you acting that way?" she asked, fighting back tears. "Is it because of today? Is it because of... Carterra?"

"Carterra? What about her?"

"She's your mate, and your closest friend." Steeling herself, she asked, "Do you love her?"

"What? No, of course not. Not like I love you."

"Then what is it? Did you come here to tell me it's over?"

"No! No, never." He started to walk over to her, but stopped himself, pulling his foot back and staying by the window. "I told you, Aspri monitors my heart rate. I'm no longer commander, but I'm still one of Relica's honored descendants." He didn't sound like he considered it much of an honor anymore. "He'll know if I get too excited. I can't be too close to you. Even just seeing you..." He trailed off, his gaze traveling down her barely covered body.

"Oh, thank goodness," she said, relief flooding through her. "I'm already isolated enough on this ship. Losing you would make it unbearable."

They stared at each other, hardly ten feet apart, yet with an entire universe between them.

"Have you spoken to anyone on the cart?" he asked. "The Vice President? Your family?"

His attempt at conversation, more than anything else he'd said, set her heart at ease. He looked so sweet, standing there, struggling to keep his eyes off her body. He'd nearly lost everything for her already, and here he was risking it again, just to be able to talk to her.

"Why are you smiling like that?" he asked, his own lips creeping upwards.

Her heart fluttered, and she waved her sentimentality away. "Nothing." She started gathering the blanket that she'd dropped on the floor. "Yes, I spoke to Clementine and my parents this afternoon." Pausing by the desk, she gently touched the framed picture of her family, the only thing other than her hair brush and tooth brush that she'd bothered to take out of her suitcases. "They're settled in and commended me on my organizational skills, since they still have their same neighbors. Of course Clem was pissed because she'd put in a special request to be placed next door to Aziz Ansari."

At Tausson's furrowed brow, she said, "Never mind." She went to the other side of the bed and tossed the blanket down. "As for Caleb," she continued with a growl, "I spoke to him today also. He informed me --"

She had started to make the bed, and Tausson reached down to help her from his side. When she stopped talking, he glanced down at the sheet in his hands.

"May I help?" he asked.

"No -- I mean yes." Tierney laughed at her stumble. "That would be great. Thanks."

They continued straightening out the bed as she went on with her story. "Caleb told me he's got everything under control, that he's been speaking with Commander Arrat and Chief Raleth regularly, and that Nelle and I are welcome to stay up here for as long as we want, or we could just throw ourselves out the airlocks and spare him a lot of trouble."

She could see the confusion on Tausson's face, as well as the realization that the last part of her statement was a joke, but he didn't smile. "I know you think he was involved, but I can't see how he could have managed disrupting the environmental controls in your room. No one on the Irral would do that to you, I'm certain of it."

"I don't know if he did it, but he certainly wouldn't lose any sleep if something did happen to me."

She smoothed out one last wrinkle and straightened up as Tausson did the same. Meeting his gaze, she felt the pull of him, and the pull of the freshly made bed. It was just a narrow twin. If they both reached out, their fingers would touch...

"How long can you stay?" she asked, sitting on the bed.

He eyed her suspiciously. "The sentry shift changes in six hours."

Tierney laughed. "Don't look at me like that. I just want to talk."

The corner of his mouth twitched up in a half smile. "Talk about what?" She gestured for him to sit on the bed with her, and he did so, but only on the very edge, and as far from her as he could be.

"Tell me about yourself," she said. "What's Relica like? How did you became a Squad commander when you're hardly thirty?"

Conversation flowed easily as they spent the next few hours learning each other's lives. Tausson told her about his home world, and how it was almost entirely rock, except for a few vast strips of soil, known as the Softlands, running around Relica's equator, and the single ocean separating the northwestern and southeastern hemispheres. Tierney learned about his sister, one year younger than him, whom he'd grown up with but hadn't seen in twelve years. She'd been sent to another community to provide genetic diversity to their pairs, and he'd always felt secretly responsible. He feared that he had been too obvious in his doting affection for her, since strong familial bonds were considered immoral, encouraging the value of one life over another.

Tierney also learned that the Relican Squad was viewed almost as holy crusaders, selflessly braving the dangerous galaxy to save their race. As a child Tausson had clandestinely observed the training exercises of the recruits, practicing them on his own. When he was finally old enough to sign up, he completed the course faster than any Relican in Squad history.

Hearing him talk about the Squad with such reverence and pride, Tierney realized how much she'd already cost him. Although he didn't come out and say it, he obviously missed being commander. When he shared stories about other species he'd saved, or how beautiful the Irral looked to him the first time he saw it, there was more than a hint of sadness in his eyes.

Soon, however, it was Tierney's turn, and while she swore that her life was far too boring to talk about, he insisted, so she told him about her crippling fear of heights, and how she'd finally just accepted it as a part of her life. She told him about her favorite books, foods, and movies, and how she became interested in politics as a way to make the world a better place. And she shared how, shortly after her ninth birthday, when her parents told her she wasn't going to be an only child anymore, she'd been so mad that she hardly spoke to them during the entire pregnancy. But when Clementine was born, Tierney had loved her the moment she saw her, and secretly promised to protect her from the evils of the world.

"I never told my parents about that," Tierney said through a yawn, "or Clem." She rolled onto her side, snuggling deeper into her pillow and smiling at Tausson, who lay beside her, using his arm as a pillow. "Clem would probably just use it against me, saying that I really do think of myself as her second mom." She yawned again. "And she'd be right, really."

Tausson smiled gently. "I should go. The shift will be changing soon."

"How can you tell?" she asked. "I haven't seen a clock anywhere. Without the sun it's impossible to tell what time of day it is. I have to keep asking everybody."

He pointed at a metal panel on the wall that had a wide, foot-long cylinder mounted inside it. Tierney had noticed similar panels all over the ship, but other than the fact that the cylinder was painted with different color stripes and slowly spun around, she hadn't been able to figure out what they were.

"Those are clocks?" She rubbed her tired eyes. "I thought they were some sort of Relican art."

Tausson chuckled, earning him a swat on the shoulder. "Don't laugh at me," she said, though she was laughing too.

With another glance at the clock, his face sobered. "I really should go." But he stayed on the bed, and Tierney felt the cold, angry world creeping into their warm shelter.

"Can you come again tomorrow?" she asked.

"I don't think so. Once was all I bargained for, and I don't want to risk getting the sentry in trouble. I hadn't actually planned on staying this long tonight. Besides, I'll have to stay focused on my training, and will need my rest. I've defeated Rasmus before, but I'd be a fool not to prepare for the blood walk."

"The blood walk," Tierney repeated.

Staring into his beautiful dark silver eyes, a heavy sadness weighed down on her. Tonight had been wonderful. Even though her eyes were sore and begging to close, she would give anything to keep him there beside her.

"We're never going to be together again, are we?" she whispered.

"We will," he said with a desperate determination. "We'll figure out a way. We have to." He brought his hand up to her face, but stopped himself just before touching her skin. He lowered it back onto the bed.

Hot tears pricked her eyes. "No we won't, Tausson. I want it more than anything, but I can't lie to myself."

It was an echo of what Commander Arrat had told her earlier that day, and it brought to mind the final words the commander had spoken.

Either leave him alone, or be with him the only way our culture will allow.

Tierney rolled onto her back, her mind racing with a new possibility, a possibility that she'd never seriously considered before.

Lutari and Inlan were mates, but they were more than that -- they were close friends, spending time together often. Tausson and Commander Arrat had also clearly formed a deep bond of trust and affection. After spending the night with Tausson, Tierney no longer saw his friendship with the commander as a threat, because it was obvious that's all it was.

Tierney needed to stop viewing this relationship as doomed, and instead view it as a problem with a solution. Solving problems was what she did best.

There's always a solution, her mother had told her over and over when she was growing up, but it's not always the one you want.

"When is your pairing cycle with Commander Arrat over?" she asked.

His eyes widened in surprise, then narrowed in suspicion. "Technically not for another week, but in reality it's been over for the past year, since Aspri confirmed that she's gestating."

"She's pregnant?"

"Of course," said Tausson with an amused smile.

Of course.

"That is the whole point, isn't it?" she muttered.

"Why do you want to know?" he asked.

Tierney sat up, then got out of bed to pace the small room. Was she really going to do this? It was against everything she believed in. It was degrading. It was demoralizing.

But it's the only way. It's the solution to the problem.

Tausson stood as well. "What's going on, Tierney?" he asked, watching her anxiously.

She stopped at the foot of the bed and said, "I'll be your Asteroid Mate."