Cosmic Boneyard

FIVE DAYS BEFORE

"With the death of the last star, the age of starlight comes to an end. The world is plunged into an endless darkness, and as frost creeps over the Earthー"

"Ugh. That sounds stupid."

"What? No it doesn't. It's cool. Stars are cool."

"Stars aren't real, idiot. Why would you write about something that isn't real? All it does is waste data, andー"

Iryo resisted the urge to groan. Hadn't she been listening? He knew stars weren't real. That didn't mean they were made-up. They could've been real a long time ago. Like dinosaurs, or fire. And he wasn't planning on writing it down! Probably.

"It doesn't even matter, anyway," Polua sighed, grabbing his wrist and tugging him down towards the cave entrance, "Ma said we had to be home by the sixth bell, and the fifth just rang. Maybe you would've heard it if you hadn't been daydreaming."

"I wasn't daydreaming," Iryo grumbled, stumbling to keep up with his sister, "I was just... thinking while I was digging."

Polua cast a doubtful glance towards his sack, which was only half-full with a small pile of sad-looking dim djerkites. "Right," she snorted, "Working."

As they neared the entrance, illuminated by the green light of the biomoss lanterns, Polua silently began tugging handfuls of djerkites from her own pack and stuffing them inside of Iryo's. By the time they reached the Allotter, both of their packs would hold roughly the same amount.

"Hello, fine folks of the Boneyard Mines!" chirped the Allotter, staring blankly at the space above their heads with its frozen smile, "How may the Allotter assist you today? Say 'one' to review your account, say 'two' toー"

"Four," Polua interrupted, rolling her eyes, and the Allotter blinked, processing the request.

"You have selected 'four', making a deposit. Is this correct?"

"Yes," Iryo said quickly, before Polua could say anything. She glared at him. Iryo knew Ma didn't like it when he spoke to the Employees, but he thought it was cool. It wasn't like the government didn't already have a voice file for him. They had one for everyone.

"Thank you, fine folks. Please present your goods for the Allotter," the Allotter instructed, and held out its hand. It's skin was a dark green color, like all the Employees, and Iryo watched with interest as Polua's pale hands brushed past the Allotter's as she handed over their packs, gloves, and lanterns.

They waited there for a few minutes as the Allotter strode into the back room with their supplies. When it emerged, its hands were empty.

"Transaction complete. Polua Obnir, twenty-one point six coins have been deposited into your account. Iryo Obnir, eighteen point twelve coins have been deposited into your account. Is there anything else the Allotter can assist you with today?"

"No," Polua dismissed it as she started walking away, "C'mon, Iryo, Ma will kill us if we're late again."

Iryo turned to follow her, but something made him twist back to look at the Allotter. It stared back, looking directly at him. Iryo felt a shiver run down his back. It's dark eyes bored into his, making it look... almost human. Iryo felt like his feet were frozen to the ground.

Then the Allotter shifted, its eyes flicking back to staring blankly ahead, and the spell was broken. Iryo spun around and hurried after Polua, trying to shake the feeling that the Allotter was still staring into his soul.

"How was work today, you two?" asked Ma at dinner, "Did you make a lot of money?"

"It was fine, except Iryo kept trying to make stuff up again," grumbled Polua as she shoveled the food into her mouth. It was blue roots 5 today. Iryo hated blue roots 5.

"I hate blue roots 5," he complained, "And it's not making stuff up, it's just telling a story. And it could be true! I bet stars were real once upon a time, or else we wouldn't have stories about them!"

Ma smiled at him thinly. "Sweetheart, I know you love your stories, but we've been over this. Fairy tales are fairy tales for a reason. Ancient people didn't know what biomoss was, so they called the mysterious lights in the ceiling 'stars'. And I know you don't like them, but they're good for you, so you'll eat them anyway."

"You mean they were on sale," Iryo huffed, pushing the mushy roots around on his tray, "You always only get what's on sale because we're poor."

"Iryo Obnir!" Ma snapped, straightening up, "Do not take that kind of tone with me, young man! Just because we need to save a little does not mean we are poor. There are plenty that are worse off than us, so you should be grateful you have what you have!"

Polua was watching them with bored eyes, still eating her roots. Iryo felt a rush of anger looking at her. Wasn't she supposed to be on his side?

"I don't care!" he shouted, throwing down his spork and standing up, "I'm thirteen! Other kids my age get to go to school and eat stuff that isn't on sale! If I have to work in the mines all day at least I should be able to dream about stars without you guys attacking me!"

"We aren't attacking you!" cried Polua, anger flushing her face, "We're trying to get you to be realistic! You can't spend your whole life crying about what other people haveー"

"I'm not!" he shouted over her, "That wasn't the point! I just meant that you guys keep throwing away my ideas about the stars, andー"

"Enough!" roared Ma, and Iryo's mouth snapped shut. His eyes burned with tears, and his throat felt tight. But Ma was fair. Maybe, if she just listenedー

"Iryo, please, for the love of Baryot, shut up about the fucking stars."

Iryo felt his butt hit the seat with a loud thump. Ma had never sworn in front of them before. She hadn't sounded mad, though, just... tired.

Iryo ate the rest of his blue roots 5 in silence, blinking rapidly down at his tray and trying not to sniffle too loudly. When he was done, he went straight to his cot in the bedroom and rolled over to face the wall. He could hear Polua and Ma murmuring in the main room, and he clamped his hands over his ears to block them out. Quietly, Iryo murmured more of his story to himself.

With the death of the last star, the age of starlight comes to an end. The world is plunged into an endless darkness, and as frost creeps over the world, humans panic and try to escape anywhere they can. There are screams and sirens, and dinosaurs roam the streets roaring.

Then, amid the fire and the frost, a boy emerges. He is not afraid. He is going to find new stars, and save the world.

FOUR DAYS BEFORE

The chiming of the second bell jolted Iryo awake, and for a moment he lay still, gasping for breath. What had his dream been about? All he could remember was craning his neck upwards, looking for the stars, but he couldn't see any. Why had he woken up scared, then?

Well, it doesn't matter, he thought bitterly, apparently stars aren't allowed anymore.

Iryo groaned as he pulled himself out of his cot, tucking his hands under his armpits to try and conserve warmth. He pulled on his jacket and hat as quick as he could before heading into the main room.

"Iryo."

Iryo reluctantly turned around. Ma was standing in the doorway, already dressed in her work jumpsuit and mask with her goggles resting on her red maintenance helmet. Iryo refused to meet her eyes, instead staring at the little brown hairs she hadn't been able to tuck under her helmet.

"Iryo, sweetheart," Ma sighed, seeing his expression, "I'm sorry about last night. It wasn't fair to you. I know how much you like your stars, and I shouldn't have tried to take that away from you. You know I wish I could send the two of you to school. But..."

But we're poor, Iryo wanted to finish, but he didn't. "I get it. It's ok. I'll try not to get so distracted from now on."

Ma made a small noise, and swept him into her arms. "Thank you, sweetheart. I need to go to work now, and you need to get ready, but I just wanted to have this talk with you before I went. I love you, Iryo. I'll see you before the sixth bell."

"Love you too. See you."

The door hissed as it slid shut behind Ma, and then Iryo was alone. Well, almost alone.

"Polua! Wake up or I'm gonna finish the orange grains 9!"

When Polua and Iryo finally left for work, masks pulled up and goggles over their eyes, the third bell was echoing through the air. When they got outside, something urged Iryo to look up. It was just the ceiling, same as always, impossibly dark and so, so far away. He wondered what the ancient people saw, how lit up the ceiling must have been before all of the biomoss was harvested.

The clang of the drifter as it pulled in brought him out of his thoughts, and Iryo and Polua boarded after presenting their passes to the Driver. It stared ahead with the same dead stare that all the Employees had, dark green hands resting perfectly still on the controls. Iryo peered at its face, trying to get it to look at him like the Allotter had. He hadn't imagined that, had he?

But when the Driver turned to him, it was staring slightly to the right of his face, and it's expression was as bland as ever.

"Hello, fine folks of the Comet Town Living Center! How may the Driver assist you today?"

"Uh, nevermind," Iryo stuttered quickly, "Dismiss. Sorry."

As he squeezed into the bench beside Polua, the drifter shuddering as it lifted from the ground, Iryo asked, "Hey, do you think Employees are, like, real people?"

Polua stared at him flatly. "What are you talking about now? Did the Driver glitch or something?"

"No," Iryo said defensively, "I just meant... do you think they have feelings? Can they think, or are they like robots?"

"They can't think or feel. They're programmed." Polua snapped, "You know that, I know you know that. Is this because Ma told you to stop believing in stars?"

"I don't believe in stars!" he protested, feeling the bitter anger from last night surge up, "I was just wondering! It was just a story!"

"Well yesterday we only made like twenty coins each because of your story, so sorry if I have a problem with it!"

"Ugh!" Iryo growled. He wished he could change seats, but they all looked pretty full. "You're so annoying!"

"You mean I'm right." Polua said with finality, and Iryo just turned away from her, scowling. Just because he didn't have a good comeback didn't mean he thought she was right.

Suddenly, the drifter jerked to the right, and Iryo found himself sprawled on Polua's lap. What had happened? The drifters all had Drivers; they never stopped or went the wrong way unless it was an emergency. He started to stand up so he could see over the seat in front of him, but then the drifter abruptly turned the other way, and Iryo yelped as he went crashing to the floor of the small aisle in between the seats.

All around them, other people were talking over each other; they babbled like water over rocks and only got louder and louder.

Polua yanked Iryo up before someone could fall on top of him.

"What happened?" he asked breathlessly, "Is the Driver glitching? Was I right?"

"I said that, not you," Polua pointed out absently, craning her neck to see, "I don't know. It looks the same from the back, it just keeps turning the wheel randomly."

As if to punctuate her statement, the drifter spun to the left again, sharp enough that Iryo was a little worried it would drop to the ground.

A woman screamed once, high-pitched and panicky, and that seemed to be the go ahead for everyone else to start screaming. Polua grabbed Iryo and pulled him closer to her as people stood and tried to stagger to the front. By now, the drifter was wildly shooting forwards, making sudden, sharp turns that sent everyone crashing to the floor.

Iryo clutched onto Polua's jacket, squeezing his eyes shut. He opened his mouth to say somethingー he didn't know what.

And then it stopped.

Iryo almost didn't realize it at first, but slowly the noise of the other passengers filtered in, and he could hear what they were saying.

"ーthe hell happened, was there an accident?"

"ーthat damn Driver, these Employee keep glitching more and more, don't know how we got so reliant on these thingsー"

"Are you alright? Reo, my crystal, look at me, did you hit your head?"

"ーwill definitely be reporting this, all the way to President Baryot himself! I swearー"

"Papa? Where are you going?" That last voice came from a small child underneath the seat across the aisle from Iryo and Polua. A man strode away from them towards the front of the bus. The kid peered out with watery eyes underneath their goggles. Their helmet was green, marking them as a food processor, though judging by the size it was probably their father's.

Iryo ducked his head down to catch the child's eye. "Hey, kid," he started lamely.

The kid stared up at him. Iryo didn't know what to say. He just wanted to stop them from crying.

"I'm Polua, and this is my brother Iryo," Polua said from behind Iryo. She was using that fake happy voice that she used with strangers in the mines. "We work in the Boneyard Mines. What's your name?"

"Jaroul," the kid mumbled, "Papa makes food. I help."

"Well, Jaroulー" Polua started, but then the kid's father stomped back over.

"Jar, c'mon," he beckoned roughly, eyeing Iryo and Polua with suspicion, "We're walking the rest of the way. Those Employees are more trouble than they're worth."

Jaroul scrambled up and followed their father away without another glance. More people rushed off of the drifter now that it was stopped, but it didn't look like they were at the Boneyard Mines yet. Iryo looked to Polua, wondering if they should get off too.

"If we take the time to walk, we won't be able to work as long," Polua told him uneasily, "Let's just hope it doesn't glitch again."

By the time the drifter started back up again, there was only one other person still on boardー a grizzled old man with a purple veteran helmet. He wasn't wearing a mask, and Iryo could see a thick clump of gray hair over his mouth. He'd never seen a mustache in person before. The man opened one eye behind his dusty goggles when he noticed Iryo staring at him, and Iryo flinched back into his seat.

The rest of the ride was as smooth as ever, and when they got off, Iryo peered nervously at the Driver. It stared off to the side of him, smile wide and eyes blank. Iryo almost turned away when he noticed it.

The Driver's hands were clenched around the controls, so tight that its knuckles were turning light green. Iryo sucked in a deep breath. When he clenched his fists, it was because he was angry or frustrated. Could the Driver be frustrated? But why? Because it glitched? Or did it glitch because it was frustrated?

"Iryo, are you coming?" Polua asked impatiently, and Iryo quickly hopped off the drifter. Right. It was time for work.

A different Allotter had replaced the one from yesterday. This one didn't look at Iryo when they got their mining supplies from it, even though he kept glancing back at it all the way to the mines.

The president of the government wants to order everyone to dig deep under the ceiling, (which they call the ground because they live on top of it) so they can live there without freezing to death, because the stars keep them warm, but the boy tells them not to. The boy is super smart, and he tells everyone that if they just work together, they can get more stars and keep living on top of the ceiling with the fire and the dinosaurs. Because of how smart and cool he is, everyone decides to listen to the boy and not go under the ground.

"Are you actually working this time, or are you thinking about stars?"

"I'm not thinking about stars!"

"Really? What are you thinking about?"

"Nothing!"

"So you're just standing there like a rock, staring at the wall, thinking about nothing?"

Iryo glared at Poluaー or at least where he thought she was. She was on the other side of the biomoss lantern, which made it hard to see her. Reluctantly, he went back to the small hole he had made. The special mining patches on his gloves had scratchy pads on the palms and fingers that made it easier to dig in the dirt and find the hard lumps of djerkite, but they were uncomfortably heavy and itchy to wear.

He dug out another hard stone, the faint orange glow coming from the cracks marking it as djerkite. It was only the size of his thumb, and barely glowing, so it wouldn't be worth much, but Ma always said that every little bit counted. Counted towards what?

"Hey, what are djerkites even used for?" he wondered aloud, "I mean, I know they're easy to mine, which is why they hire kids, and the government pays money for them, so they must use them for something, right?"

"Do you just never pay attention when Ma tells us stuff?" Polua sighed. He could practically hear her rolling her eyes. "The government uses djerkites to program the Employees."

"How?" Iryo asked, pausing in his digging, "Do they, like, melt it down and use it to make their brains or something?"

"I don't think they have brains," Polua told him, "They're programmed, which means they're machines inside. Now keep working."

"'Now keep working,'" Iryo mimicked quietly to himself in a high-pitched tone. Polua made an aggravated noise, having heard him easily in the otherwise-silent echoey cave.

He kept working. The Allotter didn't look at him when they exchanged their djerkites. Iryo was surprised to find himself a little disappointed.

THREE DAYS BEFORE

"What are you planning to do on your day off?" Ma asked as she was pulling her mask over her nose. Iryo looked up from his orange grains 3. They weren't as good as the orange grains 9, but they had finished that yesterday morning.

"Day off?" he asked.

Ma smiled; he could tell by the twinkling in her eyes, which weren't covered by her goggles yet. "Sweetheart, don't tell me you forgot? The Child Labor Day is in three days. You get the day off workー"

"And Polua doesn't!" Iryo finished, eyes wide. She was rightー he'd forgotten! Polua was sixteen this year, which meant she was technically an adult now, and so Iryo would be the only one with a day off each year for the next three years. Previously, he and Polua would spend their day off sleeping in, orー on one memorable yearー visiting the zoo with some kids who were in school. But Iryo knew what he'd be doing this year.

"I'll probably just hang out here," he lied. He knew Ma wouldn't like it, but Iryo's mind was set. He was going to use his day off to go visit the Data Centerー he would download all he could about stars and Employees and djerkites. Maybe he could even find some empty data ports while he was in town, so he could write down his story. It was a good story, Iryo knew, even if Ma and Polua didn't appreciate it.

The boy hires a crew of brave explorers, and they all climb up to the highest cliff in the world to find the stars. When they look up, there isn't a ceiling above themー it's just empty as far as they can see. Still, the boy isn't nervous. When they get to the peak, the explorers meet a strange group of beings.

They look like humans, except they have green skin and they're all smiling. The beings aren't like robotsー they can think and feel.

"Are you the same Driver as before?" Iryo asked before he could lose his nerve, "You look the same. Sometimes it's hard to tell, but I'm pretty sure. I noticed when they replaced the Allotter. But it didn't glitch, not really. And you totally glitched, but they didn't replace you."

The Driver stared in his direction, smiling absently. "I'm so sorry, fine folks, but I don't seem to understand your request. Is there anything else the Driver can assist you with today?"

Iryo studied the Driver. It looked normal, and its hands were relaxed. But Iryo knew he hadn't imagined how tense they were yesterday. Further down in the drifter, Polua was glaring at him from her seat. There were hardly any other passengers todayー it was just them, the maskless veteran, and a tired-looking woman in a black government helmet. Maybe she was there to supervise the Driver?

"Don't worry," he whispered to the Driver, "I won't report you. I don't think it was your fault."

The Driver didn't react, and after a moment Iryo gave up and shuffled down the aisle to sit with Polua. The ride was calm and steady, and the government worker got off after one stop.

"Three."

"You have selected 'three', withdrawing workplace equipment. Is this correct?"

"Yes."

Iryo was too busy trying to catch the Allotter's eye to interrupt this time. He wondered what happened to the first Allotter. Had the government killed it? Could you kill something that wasn't alive?

"Here is the workplace equipment assigned to you, Polua Obnir and Iryo Obnir. Is there anything else the Allotter can assist you with today?" the Allotter asked when it came back with their sacks, mining gloves, and lanterns.

"Yes!" Iryo blurted out quickly, a thought striking him, "Allotter, do you know what djerkites are used for?" Polua spun to look at him incredulously, but she didn't speak up, which meant she had to be curious, too.

The Allotter blinked slowly as it processed the question, but it didn't look at him. "Djerkites are valuable minerals used by the government in the process of programming the Employees," it responded. Was it Iryo's imagination, or did it sound angry?

"I told you," Polua was hissing triumphantly, but Iryo was already asking his next question.

"Allotter, how does the government program the Employees?" he asked eagerly. Finally, he was going to get answers!

The Allotter was silent as it processed his request. Then it continued to be silent for longer than usual. Iryo felt his smile drop. Did he break the Alloter? Was it mad at him? Polua shifted her weight from foot to foot next to him.

Then it happened. Ever so slowly, the Allotter tilted its head downwards, until its gaze rested directly on Iryo's own. It was what he'd been hoping for, but he was suddenly self-conscious. Iryo bit his lip and looked down at the Allotter's stone desk.

"...I'm so sorry, fine folks, but I don't seem to understand your request." it said after a long pause. Iryo flicked his gaze up in surprise. It was still looking at him, and it was still smiling in the way that all the Employees did. Looking into its eyes, though, Iryo could see it didn't actually look happy. It was like when Iryo had to get his picture taken for the government each year, and Ma made him smile.

"Aren't you gonna ask if there's anything else you can assist us with?" Polua asked. There was an odd wobble to her voice, like she was scared of the Allotter. Iryo realized she'd grabbed his shoulder at some point.

The Allotter blinked, and then it jerked its head to look back above them. "Is there anything else the Allotter can assist you with today?" it asked. Iryo wasn't sure if it was actually asking or if it was just following Polua's request. He was going to try asking something else, but then Polua squeezed his arm sharply.

"No," she said, her voice firm, and she yanked him towards the mines before he could get another word out.

"Polua! Let go!" Iryo cried, stumbling along behind her. She was going to leave bruises on his arm!

He tried to turn around to look at the Allotter, but it was staring blankly ahead once more.

"How was work, you two?" Ma asked that night. Tonight dinner was brown protein 7. It was tough and chewy, but the taste wasn't too bad.

"It was fine," Iryo mumbled, hoping Polua wouldn't mention what happened with the Allotter that morning, "We made like thirty coins each."

"I kept him focused," Polua bragged. Iryo snorted. She'd been more distracted than him, but neither of them stopped to talk the whole day, which meant they got more djerkites than usual.

"But something happened this morning," Polua continued hesitantly, and Iryo kicked her under the table. No! If Ma heard about that, she'd flip. But Polua just kicked him back and lifted her chin. "Iryo was asking the Allotter about djerkites, and it looked at him. Like, right at him. And it was talking weird, like slowly and stuff. And the Driver yesterday glitched and almost killed usー"

"It didn't almost kill us!" Iryo protested, struggling to swallow his protein so he could keep talking, "I think it was just angry, but no one was hurt, and it was fine on the way home!"

"Excuse me?" Ma said sharply, her spork clattering to her tray, "Are you talking about the Driver that glitched and started swerving that drifter around? You were on that drifter? And you got back on for the ride home?!"

"Uh," Polua started, looking a little guilty. Iryo had purposefully not told Ma about that, but he'd assumed Polua had. Guess not.

"That's it. We've let these government machines into our lives too much!" Ma snapped, "I can't believe I trusted the two of you to some robot! Both of you are staying home from work tomorrow, and the next day too. How was the Allotter looking at you?"

The sudden switch of focus to Iryo made him jolt in his seat a little. "Uh, not in a creepy way?" Well… "I mean it was sorta creepy, cuz they don't really look at people ever? But it didn't say anything weird. And the Driver just glitched. It was an honest mistake. It was just angry."

"Iryo," Ma began, her voice shaking. Polua was curled in her seat like she was the one being scolded. "I don't care if it didn't say anything weird. These things should not be looking at anyone; they've been programmed not to. Just like they've been programmed not to get angry. Even if these are just glitches, they're dangerous glitches, and I cannot allow you to be around them. There's been reports, these past few years, of Employees glitching more and more. I ignored them because I didn't think it was happening here. I see now that was a mistake."

"B-but what about work?" Polua asked meekly, "How're we gonna get money?"

Ma ran a hand through her short hair. "I don't know. We'll figure something out. But your safety is more important than the money. Do both of you understand?"

"Yes," they both chorused, but Iryo privately had some doubts. Just because some of the Employees were glitching didn't mean they were dangerous. That Driver yesterday could've crashed the drifter and actually killed them all, but all it had done was swerve around a bit. It was angry, not dangerous.

"If I got super angry, would you try to use djerkite to program me so I was happy?" Iryo found himself asking.

Ma raised an eyebrow, obviously thrown. "Of course not, sweetheart. I don't even think that's possible. Besides, anger is what makes you human. You can't program out the human."

The ninth bell was chiming softly when Iryo climbed into his cot. The eighth, ninth, tenth, and first bells were always quieter than the rest, especially the second bell, which was louder since it was what woke up most people for work. Ma woke with the first bell, because she worked further away. Iryo wondered how she never slept through it.

He sighed as he listened to Polua and Ma talk quietly in the main room. He wondered what they were always talking about. Sometimes he was still awake when they came into the bedroom, but most of the time he was already asleep.

Iryo studied the ceiling of the room, trying to picture it infinitely larger and covered in stars. There was something about the Employees that bothered Iryo. Ma had said that anger was what made him human. But he's been so sure that the Driver was angry. And the Driver obviously wasn't human. It was an Employee! And Employees were programmed.

Of course, that didn't mean they were made, like robots, Iryo realized. Ma said she wasn't sure if that was possible, to program a human, but what about something else? What if the Employees could think and feel, but were programmed not to?

If Iryo was suddenly taken by the government and programmed, he'd probably be mad too, he thought.

The green beings tell the boy and his explorers that they know where the stars went, but they're worried about what the explorers might do with them.

One of the explorers has an idea to make the beings help them, but the boy looks into the beings' eyes and sees that they don't want to go with him. So he sends that explorer back to the other humans and continues on without making the green beings do anything they don't want to. As a reward, they tell him where the stars are, because they see that he's actually really nice and cool.

TWO DAYS BEFORE

Iryo woke up to the sound of the second bell. He was halfway through slipping on his hat and jacket before he remembered that Ma hadn't wanted them to work today. Then he went to the main room to make breakfast anyway, because he didn't know what else to do. He was already awake.

"Good morning, sweetheart," Ma told him, pulling her goggles on, "I notified the government the two of you wouldn't be working for a while. You can go back to sleep with your sister."

"I know," Iryo said, mixing water into the orange grains 3, "I just woke up anyway. I won't wake her up."

"Alright, that's fine," Ma said, "Just make sure not to take the drifter anywhere today. Try to stay away from the Employees until this all blows over."

Iryo wanted to roll his eyes, but he didn't. Ma was just being paranoid. "I know, Ma. If I go anywhere, I'll take Polua, and we'll walk."

"Thank you," Ma told him, brushing a hand over his head. Iryo scowled and readjusted his hat. "I love you. I'll see you before the sixth bell."

"Yeah. Love you," Iryo responded, dipping his spork in the orange glop. He waited until the third bell, when he was sure she would be long gone, before he went to wake up Polua.

"So why do you want to go to town so badly?" groaned Polua as they trudged down the cobbled path, "And why'd you have to wake me up to do it?"

"I let you sleep in a whole bell!" Iryo defended cheerfully, "Ma doesn't want me going anywhere alone, and I figured you could go buy something that isn't on sale. It's not like you're gonna get a day off anymore."

Polua frowned. It was weird, seeing her in her mask and goggles with just a hat on her head, but since they weren't going to work they couldn't wear their helmets. More of her brown hair poked out.

"Maybe you can get a real haircut," he goaded, and she shoved him.

"Oh, please," she snapped, "My hair is fine. Ma got those new shears last year, remember? It hasn't grown that much. And that still doesn't answer my first question."

Iryo shrugged, looking out across the wide plains of jagged gray rock to his left. "I was just thinking of going to the Data Center," he said, trying to act casual, "Maybe read about djerkites or something."

Polua let out a long, drawn-out sigh. She was so dramatic. "I can't believe how much you bounce around with this kind of stuff," she complained, "First stars, then Employees, now djerkites?"

"Hey, you guys are the ones that said I should stop talking about stars!" Iryo cried, a bit stung, "And is it so bad I wanna know how my job works?" Also, he was pretty sure all three topics were connected, but he couldn't tell Polua that.

"Ex-job, probably," Polua muttered.

What? Iryo stopped, turning to look at her.

"What?"

"I don't think it's gonna blow over like Ma hopes," Polua admitted quietly, her dark eyes serious behind her goggles, "If this goes on for a while, we might have to quit and try to find another job that doesn't involve Employees at all."

"What?!" Iryo couldn't believe what he was hearing, "But that's, like, all the jobs! Or at least all the ones that actually give you money! Especially the ones allowed for kids!"

"You don't even like mining!" Polua pointed out, "Maybe you'll like the next job better."

"I don't want another job!" Iryo hadn't realized how scared he was until he heard his voice crack. "I've only ever done djerkite mining! Why's everyone so worried about the Employees all of the sudden?!"

"Stop yelling," Polua admonished, but she looked nervous too, "And it's not all of the sudden. They've been glitching more and more for the past year at least. You just don't download the news." Of course he hadn't. Kids weren't allowed to download the news.

"And you do?"

"Well, Ma does. We talk about it after you go to sleep usually." Polua shrugged. "She'd tell you if you asked, but you're always talking about imaginary stuff like stars and making up stories that she didn't think you'd care."

"I care!" Iryo protested, but he didn't really think he'd enjoy talking about the news every night. It was always just a list of things going wrong. Polua didn't look like she believed him either.

When they arrived at the town, Polua immediately darted for the goods sector.

"I'll meet you by the entrance at four bells!" she called at Iryo, and he nodded in response, already thinking about what he was going to research. Anything on stars would come first, naturally. Afterwards, he could look for djerkites and Employees.

As Iryo trotted down the street, he noticed that the town seemed strangely empty. He didn't go there often, but in the past it'd always seemed so crowded. Maybe it was because most people were at work now?

"Hello, fine folks of the Comet Town Data Center! How may the Librarian assist you today?"

"Hi," Iryo said, suddenly feeling shy, "Uh. Do you have any data on, um, yourself?" Shoot, he'd meant to ask for stars first. Oh well.

The Librarian tilted its head. "Unfortunately, no data was found entitled, 'yourself'. Is there anything else the Librarian can assist you with today?" Iryo felt his face flush a little. Oops.

"Shoot, sorry. I didn'tー I meant, data on Employees. Like you. Um, maybe related to how you'reー how Employees are programmed?" he stuttered through, trailing off at the end.

The Librarian processed his request. "Certainly. Sixteen data entries were found which included the topics, 'Employees' and 'programming'. You will find the download ports in sector 52H, indicated by the flashing lights. Please note there will be a small fee upon downloading."

"Yeah, I know," Iryo said, craning his neck to follow the pulsating lights leading him deeper into the Data Center, "Thanks, Librarian."

He reached sector 52H pretty quickly. It didn't look any different than the rest of the sectors; the walls were all a pale blue stone, with tall ceilings and long hallways branching off. Iryo bet he could get lost in here and not be found for days. Well, unless Ma reported him being missing, then the government could just track him...

But it wasn't like he was actually lost! The lights flashing on the walls led him to a small alcove with a scanner port, indistinguishable from any of the others save the lights still dancing along the sides of it. Iryo placed his hand on the scanner, and waited while it brought up his profile.

He'd only ever been here twice before; the first time, he'd only been about five or six, and Ma had brought he and Polua into town with her when she went shopping one night. They'd stopped in the Data Center to download pictures of the Nova City Living Center, back when Ma had thought she'd be able to move. Iryo remembered looking at the pictures in aweー he could have his own bedroom, instead of sharing with Ma and Polua!ー but it hadn't ended up working out. Obviously.

The other time had been on Child Labor Day last year, and it had just been Polua and him. She'd let him download a fairy tale book, which had been when Iryo had learned about stars in the first place. Polua had seemed as interested as he had at the time, but she'd grown tired of them so quickly. Maybe it was because she was an adult now?

In front of him, the screen flashed red. What? That hadn't happened last time. It was supposed to spit out a viewing stick and ask him to confirm the charges. He tried taking his hand off and placing it back on again. The screen flashed red.

Iryo scowled. Now the Data Center was glitching too? That wasn't fair! When would he get another chance to go to town?

He turned and started to follow the flashing lights back to the entrance. The Librarian would probably be able to fix it.

As he got closer, though, he could hear someone else talking to the Librarian. That was alright, as long as he didn't have to wait too long. He slowed down as he got closer. Something wasn't right. He could hear the Librarian, but it sounded... wrong.

"ーbut there's a plan in place, do not worry," the other voice was saying. It was smooth and pleasant sounding. If Iryo didn't know better, he'd think it belonged to an Employee.

"How can I not worry?" asked the Librarian. It sounded uneasy, which was strange to hear from an Employee. "We anticipated they would be too used to their routines to vary, despite the setbacks associated with each of us waking up, but I have hardly seen any of them in town, and there's been reports of a large number not attending work. One of them came in today asking about programming Employees."

"It shouldn't matter," the other voice insisted, "We all know their government works too slowly to do anything much in two days. We can still accomplish our task. We can still be free."

Free? By now, Iryo had stopped moving completely, frozen behind the wall. He stared across the narrow hallway at the blinking lights. His heart was pounding in his chest. The other voice had to be an Employee too. Did that mean they were actual people, with thoughts? The other voice had talked about being free later, which meant they weren't free right now.

Iryo felt like someone had taken a scoop out of his chest, and left ice in its place. He'd been trying to figure out the truth before, but it hadn't really felt real until now. His mind was racing. This was big. He'd had an idea, but he hadn't really been sure. This was a confirmation. The government really were taking Employees (were they humans beforehand, or something else?) and programming themー with the djerkites that Iryo had mined, which made his stomach feel squirmyー to be like robots. Were theyー

"ーto the stars."

What?! Shoot, what had they been saying? What about the stars? Was that where they were going? Iryo held his breath, straining his ears to hear more. He knew stars had something to do with this!

But that had apparently been the end of the conversation. Iryo heard footsteps walk away, and then the hiss of the door as it opened and closed. He waited for three long, deep breaths, before wiping his sweaty palms on his jacket and walking around the corner as casually as he could.

"Hello, fine folks," greeted the Librarian, as blandly as ever, "I hope you enjoyed your download. Is there anything else the Librarian can assist you with today?"

For a moment, Iryo considered telling the Librarian that he'd heard the conversation. He wanted to ask it about the stars, and if he could help them be free. But the Librarian's words rang in his head.

One of them came in today, it'd said, and the disgust had been clear.

"Is there anything else the Librarian can assist you with today?" repeated the Librarian. It didn't sound impatient exactly, but Iryo could bet that it probably was.

"No, I'mー I'm good," he ended up saying, "Um, good download. Thanks."

The boy follows the directions from the green beings, and he and his explorers go on a quest to find the stars. The quest is super dangerous, and there are times when the boy thinks he might die, but neither he nor his explorers ever get hurt, because they're that cool. The boy gets super strong, also, so he can protect all of his explorers.

When they finally reach the stars, they find them guarded by a wall made out of glowing rocksー

"What's wrong?"

Iryo jumped. Had he been speaking out loud? One look at Polua's face told him no. If he'd been talking about his story, she would look annoyed. Instead, she just looked curious.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you've been so quiet the whole way back," she replied, shrugging, "You're not usually this quiet. What'd you download?"

"Justー just those fairytales like last time," he mumbled, quickly trying to change the subject, "What about you?"

"I got these new goggles," Polua said, briefly pulling them out of her backpack and holding them up. They looked nice, with softer cloth and clean hexagonal lenses. "I figure you can have my old ones, if you want, since they're still nicer than yours. But don't think I didn't notice how you didn't answer my question."

Iryo struggled to find something to say. He couldn't, so he just shrugged. He knew he should probably tell Polua and Ma about the Employees, but something kept him from telling. It wasn't like he thought they'd immediately run to tell the government that the Employees were going to free themselves, but still.

"Hey." Iryo looked up at Polua. "I am your older sister, y'know. So, if there's anything you want to talk aboutー I mean, serious stuff, not just stars... Well. Y'know."

Iryo's mouth quirked up into a small smile despite himself. He did know. He and Polua argued often, but he knew he could rely on her when he really needed to.

He still didn't say anything about the Employees, though. Not to her, and not to Ma.

ONE DAY BEFORE

The second bell rang, but Iryo was already awake. He didn't know how long he'd been awake, though it must've been after the first bell. He didn't get out of his cot, though. He just stared at the rough stone ceiling above him, thinking about what he'd heard yesterday.

The other Employee had said something about two days, hadn't it? That meant whatever was going to happen, it was going to happen tomorrow. Maybe he should warn Polua and Ma? But he didn't know what the Employees were going to do. The glitches were probably part of itー the Librarian had said something about them 'waking up', whatever that meant.

If all of the Employees started glitching, and then they all left somewhere, it would probably be chaos. The Employees were involved in so many things; Iryo couldn't imagine life without them. Would there be a human working as the Allotter, or would his job be irrelevant anyways, since there wouldn't be any more programming to need djerkites for?

And without the Drivers to drive the drifters, how would people even get to work? It wasn't like they could walk everywhere. The Boneyard Mines were lower in elevation, anyway, so if Iryo wanted to walk he'd also have to scale the steep, jagged cliffs that the drifters floated down with ease.

"Iryo, are you gonna stay in your cot all day?" Polua grumbled. Iryo flinched. How long had he been thinking? Polua never got up before him.

"I'm getting up, relax," he said hastily, sitting up and grabbing his hat and jacket, "Where are we going?"

"I don't know," Polua said over her shoulder as she strode into the main room, "But we aren't staying in here all day. I left you some orange grains 3, but you gotta mix it yourself."

"Maybe we could go into town again?" Iryo suggested, heading straight for the food, "I've been working hard; I have money left." Mostly because he didn't actually download any data yesterday, but still.

"Nah, we need to save our money anyway," Polua said. She was rummaging under a blanket in the corner for something. "I think we should do something that doesn't cost money."

Iryo shot her an incredulous glance. Everything cost money, even going to work to make money. What did she have in mind?

"Ta da!" Polua cried triumphantly, producing a small silver canister and holding it up, "Look what I got you yesterday!"

Curious, Iryo abandoned his breakfast and walked over to investigate the canister. It was cylindrical, small enough to fit in his helmet but larger than a can of food. There was a circular button protruding slightly from the side. Iryo pressed it.

"Glow in the Dark Paint," the label read out mechanically, "Color: light green. Ingredients: brown grains 4, biomoss extract... "

As the label droned on, Iryo lifted his gaze to stare at his sister, uncomprehending. Paint? He knew what it was, of course, but why would she waste money on it for him?

Polua smirked. "C'mon, think. I see you staring up at the ceiling of the bedroom all the time. I figured, maybe we can make it a bit more interesting." She shrugged, looking a little embarrassed. "I know it's not really like the stars, but... "

Iryo felt his eyes start to fill with tears as he finally got it. Polua was trying to give him the stars. That wasー he couldn'tー

He stumbled forwards and hugged her tight, his breath hitching as he tried not to cry. The paint can, still buzzing about warning labels, dug into his ribs where it was wedged uncomfortably between them, but Iryo just squeezed tighter. He took back everything he ever said about Polua being annoying. She was the best sister ever.

When they finally reach the stars, they find them guarded by a wall made out of glowing rocks. The boy is worried they won't be able to get past them, but one of his most trusted explorers steps forwards.

"I am the best miner in all the land," she declares, and she mines a path through the glowing rocks without even breaking a sweat. "C'mon, let's go see the stars."

When Ma got home, a bit before the sixth bell, she raised her eyebrows in shock at the two of them. Iryo tried to explain, but he was laughing too hard to speak. Polua made tiny snorting noises through her nose as she struggled to even sit up properly.

They'd taken the paint and tried to make stars on the bedroom ceiling, but quickly figured out that using too much paint would just cause it to drip down and make puddles on the floor. Luckily, Polua had had the foresight to take the cots and clothing chests out of the room first, so the only pieces of furniture that got paint on them were the two stools they'd been standing on to reach the ceiling.

They'd used the entire canister, covering the ceilings, bits of the floor, the stools, and themselves. At one point, Iryo had tackled Polua, smearing paint on her clothes and across her face. She'd retaliated by pouring the remains of the paint in the can on to his head.

Ma looked very tired, but she was smiling.

"What am I supposed to do with the two of you?" she asked. She used to ask that all the time, Iryo remembered, until they got old enough to start suggesting answers like, "Buy us dessert!" and "Send us to school!"

"You should paint with us," Polua suggested, catching her breath. Iryo couldn't remember the last time he'd seen her look this happy. "There's some left somewhere, probably."

"Oh, I can think of a few places," chuckled Ma, reaching forwards and running it through Iryo's hair. It came out wet and green. "Alright, just for a bit."

Stars really were amazing, Iryo mused that night, freshly showered and full of yellow vegetables 2 (his favorite!). He beamed to himself, and drifted off to the sight of the ceiling above him, covered in brightly glowing streaks, splotches, and smudged handprints.

The boy leads the way through the glowing rocks into a deep, dark cave. Inside, stars are piled high, glowing so bright it hurts to look at them. The boy and the explorers take off their jackets and hats, because the stars keep them warm.

One by one, they pick up the stars and throw them into the wide open space above them where the ceiling would be. The stars stick up there, and everyone laughs as light floods the land. The age of starlight has begun anew.

ONE DAY AFTER

Iryo's head hurt.

He remembered falling asleep peacefully, watching the newly painted stars on his ceiling. Then the next thing he knew, Polua was crying his ear and telling him to wake up.

"Iryo!" she gasped, "Iryo, please! Get up!"

He struggled to open his eyes. It was surprisingly difficult.

"'Lua?" he mumbled, "What... what?"

"You got hit really hard," she sniffled. She sounded like a little girl. "Your head's bleeding."

"That's why we gotta wear helmets to work," he told her, a bit confused. He still couldn't quite figure out how to pull his eyes all the way open.

Polua made a noise that sounded a bit like a laugh, but also kind of like a sob. "We're not at work, Iryo. I don't know what hit you, but I don't think it was a rock."

It was at this point that Iryo finally opened his eyes. They closed again almost immediately, but now that he'd worked out how to do it he was able to open them again.

The first thing Iryo saw was Polua's face. She didn't have her mask or goggles on, so he could see the tears streaking down her pale cheeks. Her hat, usually a dark gray color, was speckled with splashes of light green paint and dirt.

Behind her, Iryo could see the dull gray metal of the drifter. Polua helped him sit up higher. His head spun a bitー it still hurt like crazyー but after blinking a few times, he was able to see that the drifter behind her was crumpled up at the front, and it was resting on the ground instead of hovering.

"What?" he asked again, turning to Polua helplessly, "I don't…"

"Do you remember getting on the drifter?" she asked him, wiping her face. He shook his head, and immediately regretted it. "Yesterday morning, we were sleeping in, and the Drivers came and got us."

"The Drivers?" Iryo repeated, trying to remember, "I thought Ma said no working. And didn't we make the stars yesterday?"

"The stars were two days ago," Polua whispered, "It's the day after Child Labor Day."

Oh, Iryo thought belatedly, that must be what the Employees were talking about.

"The Drivers said the government needed us to work today," Polua continued softly, "They loaded us on to the drifters. Ma already left for work. I didn't... I didn't question it. I should've... "

"What happened?" Iryo prompted.

"We drove for a long time. I think we all realized something was wrong, but no one wanted to do anything in case the Driver acted up like last time."

Iryo sucked in a deep breath, suddenly remembering a voice. It was scared and youngー Jaroul, the kid from the drifter that day.

I'm scared! Iryo remembered them wailing, I want my Papa!

"I think we drove for most of the day, but there weren't any bells, so we don't know how long," Polua continued, "At one point, some of us older kidsー it was mostly only kids, no one older than seventeenー we tried to go to the front and get the Driver to pull over. Itー it just... "

Polua looked down, and Iryo followed her gazeー blinking quickly as his vision swam with the movementー down to her wrist, which was circled with dark purple bruises.

"We ran into something, I think. I passed out. I woke up last night. Some of the kids who weren't that hurt dragged us out. Youー you were covered in blood. You still are."

Iryo swallowed, looking down at himself. Something (probably his mask, because it wasn't around his face) was tied tightly around his head. He didn't have his jacket on, but his shirt was stained all over with dark red and rusty brown. Although...

"I don't think it's all mine," Iryo admitted, trying to reach past the throbbing in his head to remember the day before, "I think... there was someoneー" I'm scared! "ーthat kid from before, Jaroul, they were there, and theyー Iー"

Iryo leaned forwards and felt his body convulse in horror, bile streaming past his lips, as he suddenly remembered the crash. His head was pounding like someone was digging through it. He remembered the metal from the drifter twisting and crushing, Iryo frantically pulling off his jacket and trying to wrap it around the kid, the blood, the bloodー

"Hey, you're okay!" came a voice suddenly from behind Iryo. He carefully tilted his head backwards.

The speaker was a guy who looked Polua's age. He, too, was just wearing a gray hat without goggles or a mask, and he had a bruise that covered his left cheek.

"My name's Mozzpi," he said, "Come on. Now that we know you probably won't die, we can get you set up."

Mozzpi led them over to a shallow cave sheltered from the wreckage by a pale boulder, where the rest of the kids had gathered. It was partially illuminated by some patches of biomoss. The kids were sporting varying injuries, and most of them were either crying or staring blankly off in the distance. Iryo felt a chill run down his spine at the image of the Employees doing the same thing. Ma had been right. They were dangerous.

Jaroul was nowhere in sight, but Iryo tried not to think too hard about them.

"Guys, this is Iryo Obnir," Mozzpi introduced. He'd been elected the leader, since no one else really wanted to be. "He's Polua's younger brother. Thirteen years old."

Iryo gave an awkward wave. He was leaning on Polua a little, but once he'd stood up, he wasn't as wobbly as he'd feared.

No one said anything, but a few looked him over with dull eyes. Polua led him over to an empty spot on the ground where they could sit.

"We need a few volunteers," Mozzpi said after they sat down, "Scouts. We don't know exactly what's going on, but we have to assume all the Employees are involved. There were tons of drifters, and the Bell-Ringer isn't doing its job either. The nearest city is Nova Major, that way." He pointed to the right. "Does anyone want to go with me to try to find help there?"

Iryo was raising his hand before Mozzpi finished talking. Polua tried to pull it down, but when she saw he wasn't budging, she raised her hand as well, glaring at him.

There were a few more hands raised, and Mozzpi nodded when he saw each one. Iryo wondered what job he had had, that he was so calm. Maybe he was one of the ones that got to go to school. Education was all about being prepared, right?

"Hey," Polua hissed at him as the others started gathering some of the biomoss into makeshift lanterns made of goggles, "What do you think you're doing? You can hardly stand up!"

"I gotta do something!" Iryo protested, "And I can stand up fine, I just have a headache!"

"Iryoー"

"Polua. Please. You can't stop me." Iryo lifted his chin. This was his fault. He hadn't told anybody about what he'd heard, and now the Employees were taking the kids somewhere, and Jaroul was dead. Iryo tried not to think of Ma. He didn't know if there were any Employees at her work. There probably were.

Polua sighed and tugged him to her until she was hugging him tightly. "I know I can't," she whispered into his hat, "I never could. But I'm only letting this happen because we can get you to a doctor once we get to Nova Major. If we do see any Employees, you can bet I'm keeping you far, far away."

Iryo shuddered. "Agreed. Same for you."

Of course, it all went wrong.

They had almost reached the city when Mozzpi held his hand up to stop them. Iryo squinted to see up ahead. Something was giving off a faint light, but he couldn't tell if the figures were humans or Employees. There were structures as well, buildings or tents or drifters, but it was too dark to make out much of anything. Polua gripped his hand tightly.

Mozzpi started moving forwards slowly, tucking their lantern under his shirt so the light was covered up. Iryo and the rest of their group followed him carefully.

"It's impossible!" someone was saying in a shaking voice, "You can't just 'wake up'! We altered the chemical composition of your brainsー we programmed you! There's no secret, no reversalー I'm sorry!"

"You are not sorry," said a cool voice. An Employee. "You are merely scared. You do not have to be. Tell us how to free our brethren without causing them pain, and we will let you go. Do not forget, we have your children."

The woman, who Iryo could now see had a black government helmet, whimpered and hid her face in her hands. She was sitting next to a lump wrapped in dark clothes. It looked like a person, so Iryo quickly looked away. He didn't want to see.

"You don't have all of us!" cried one of the kids to Iryo's left, charging forwards, and Iryo felt his heart try to leap out of his chest. Were they crazy?!

Polua grabbed his hand and yanked him back, sprinting away from where a couple of the Employees had lunged in their direction. He stumbled along before quickly regaining his feet and following blindly. He couldn't tell where the others went, if they had charged like the one kid or scattered like he and Polua. They might've been running in the same direction, but Iryo couldn't focus on anything except running after Polua.

There was a loud noise, like a screeching bang, and someone screamed. Polua skidded to a stop and shoved Iryo down, pushing him under something.

"Polua, whatー " he began breathlessly, but she cut him off.

"They're still coming. I'll lead them away, and then I'll come back for you, I promise. Stay there."

Don't leave me! Iryo wanted to scream, even though he knew it wouldn't make a difference, but she was gone before he could open his mouth. He was underneath a drifter, he realized, the gust of hot air from the hovers warming his back.

Iryo crouched there for what felt like bells, trying to breathe as quietly as he could. He tried to ignore the sounds he heard, thuds and cries and footsteps.

When the silence came, it was worse than the noise. Had Polua made it out? What about Mozzpi? And the others?

Finally, he couldn't take it any longer. He inched his way out from under the drifter, eyes straining to see anything in front of him. There were chests of some kind, he realized, labelled with pictures and diagrams. One had a food can, and another had a jacket. Food and clothes? Were they packing for a trip somewhere? Maybe they were trying to find somewhere where Employees were free.

SKREEEーBANG!

Iryo barely stopped himself from yelping, instead dropping to crouch on the ground with his hands over his ears. That noise again! What was it?

"That was a warning," said the cool voice of the Employee, "The next one will be yours, human. We do not like to hurt children, but we have no room for prisoners."

Iryo peeked his head around the drifter, morbidly curious.

There were three Employees standing around the woman from before. Beside her, there was the lump from before, except now it was joined by a second lump. This one was smaller. Iryo didn't know the name of the kid who'd charged forwards. He averted his eyes.

One of the Employees was pointing something at the woman. It looked like a short piece of pole, silvery and metallic. The greenish light from the biomoss headlights on one of the drifters pointed at them, and the light glinted off of the pole thing.

The woman was moaning softly, shaking and staring at the lumps. Iryo couldn't understand why she would want to look. He couldn't take his eyes off of the pole, which must have been the source of the noise. His head pounded in time with his heart. He wondered if the Employees would be able to hear them.

There was a noise behind him.

Iryo ducked his head back around the side of the drifter and came face to leg with an Employee. He slowly lifted his gaze to look at its face. It stared back quietly, and Iryo was hit with a rush of recognition.

"The Allotter?" he whispered, staring into those eyes that started it all.

"Hm," the Allotter said, kneeling down in front of him, "I remember you. Iryo Obnir." Its voice sounded strange, no longer mechanical and dull. It sounded like a person. Strangely, this made Iryo feel more confident. Maybe he could talk his way out of this. He was good at talking.

"Where are you and the other Employees going?" he asked shakily. He remembered the conversation he'd overheard in the Data Center. It felt like it'd happened so long ago. "Are you going to see the stars?"

The Allotter blinked, but Iryo couldn't tell if it was surprised or not. "...No," it said after a pause, "Where we are going, there will be no stars."

"Oh," Iryo said, and then, quickly, "I won't tell anyone about you guys. It's okay, you can let me go. I'm good at keeping secrets! I won't even tell my sister!" He eyed the pole in the Allotter's hand nervously. Please, please let Polua have gotten away safely.

The Allotter sighed, tired. Ma sighed like that a lot. "Child, you know I cannot trust that. Too much rides on this for there to be loose ends." Iryo didn't like the sound of that. He felt a cold pit start to form in his chest. His head felt like it was splitting in two.

"No, please! I'll be good! I won't talk aboutー about the stars, or you, orー"

"Iryo Obnir," interrupted the Allotter, with a sad look on its face, "You say you want to see the stars?"

Despite the circumstances, Iryo paused. Was that a confirmation? Had stars existed? Did stars still exist?

"Yes," he whispered, "Yes. I want to see the stars."

"Alright," said the Allotter, "Close your eyes."

Iryo hesitated, but slowly closed his eyes. Tears dripped down his face at the motion. His mind spun, trying to think of what the Employee could be doing. He probably wasn't raising the pole. He was probably walking away. Maybe he was just going to knock Iryo out. Maybeー

Iryo gasped as he felt something cold and circular press against his forehead, below where his mask was wrapped. The pole. His stomach dropped out from underneath him, and his eyes tried to flutter open. The Allotter covered his face with its hand. It felt warm. Iryo began to cry in earnest. He thought of the glowing stars on the ceiling of the bedroom, of Polua laughing and Ma running her hand through his hair.

"Don't be scared, Iryo Obnir," the Allotter said, "Open your eyes, and you'll see your stars."

When the heroー for he is no longer just a boyー returns home, hordes of admirers are waiting for him. They cheer and laugh and cry his name like he's the president of the government, and the real president is happy that they didn't have to go under the ground.

But the hero isn't watching them. He tips his head backwards and gazes up at the ceiling. It isn't dark anymore. Instead, there are spots and blotches of bright green lights crisscrossing the darkness, so bright it hurts to look at them. The whole world floods with warmth and light and happiness.

The hero smiles, surrounded by the people he loves, as he finally sees his stars.