Hope is the Thing With Feathers Chapter 3
Hope is the Thing With Feathers Chapter 3
Hope is the Thing With Feathers is a science fiction adventure that will be serialized here first with the first five chapters free. Don’t miss an episode, subscribe now
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Chapter 3
Back out in the atrium, I stopped and slumped down onto a stone bench facing some sort of neo-Greek monstrosity of a statue. It depicted two winged men. I knew it had meaning, but I didn’t have the energy to decipher it. At least the faux marble men weren’t staring at me.
With a sigh, I buried my face in my hands. Why did I think Dr. Fuller would give me a spot on her expedition? I’d just waltzed in out of the blue.
“Foolish,” I whispered. “I’ve been just foolish.”
Hushed whispers filled the space, as if the passing students didn’t want to disturb the statue. I bit my lip and glanced up at it again. A patchwork orb of gold and silver hung suspended from the ceiling, undulating slightly with the air movement. The higher man reached for the orb, while the lower man tried to pull his companion down.
How will I get Dad’s message now?
I squeezed my eyes shut. Fred really couldn’t help me—his programming wasn’t up for such a complicated question. But maybe Theo65 would help. And I already had a meeting with them planned for later.
“Hey.”
I spun around to see who’d spoken.
A man barely older than me stood next to the bench. He smiled, showing off a pair of adorable dimples. My heart skipped a beat and my mouth went dry again. Talking to cute boys was another item on the long list of things I sucked at.
“I saw you talking with Dr. Fuller.”
“Yeah.” I squinted at him as I tried to place him but couldn’t. He was good looking in a boyish way, dark hair and eyes—no, he was dreamy, with a face that should’ve graced every teenage girl’s wall.
“You’re Dr. Wren’s daughter, right?”
“Yeah.”
“I’ve been reading your dad’s research into the atmospheric layers of New Venus. He did some amazing work—especially with the drones. I can’t believe he got so much real data.”
“This planet’s atmosphere was his passion.” I smiled so wide my face hurt. Heat rose in my cheeks, no doubt resulting in unattractive, chaotic splotches.
But he didn’t seem to notice. “And his model of the Rocks… I heard that with his calculations, one could navigate that layer for as long as they wanted.”
I nodded. Besides the jacket I now wore, that model was more precious to me than anything. Someday I needed to share his work, but I wasn’t quite ready for that yet. Dad would understand.
I cocked my head. “Who are you?”
“Oh, I’m Dr. Fuller’s research assistant. Jeremy Long.” He held out a hand, and I shook it. His palm was warm.
“Are you going on the Minke expedition?” I asked, surprised at my boldness.
“Yeah.” He grinned. “It’s me, Dr. Fuller, Hector Broca, and Dr. Beecher who’s coming in from Indigo Station later today. I can’t wait to depart. It’s going to be exciting.”
My gut churned in a knot. Here was someone taking the trip I desperately wanted to be on. But I couldn’t fault him for that—no doubt he’d earned his place.
“But, hey,” he said, dropping onto the bench beside me, “I’d love to buy you a coffee and chat about your dad’s work.”
I forced a smile. “I can’t drink coffee. It makes me jittery.”
Without waiting for his reply, I stood and strode away. As handsome as he was, I couldn’t contain my jealousy. He had a spot on the expedition, and I did not.
“Hey, Stella,” Jeremy called.
I stopped and turned back.
“Go talk with Hector Broca.”
“The Minke’s captain?” I took a pace back towards Jeremy.
“You never know. He might be willing to give you a bunk. I hear he was a good friend of your dad’s.”
A little bud of hope formed in my chest. I’d never met Hector, but I remembered Dad telling me about him—Hector Broca, the great showman and mediocre engineer. But maybe in the five years since Dad’s death, Hector had sorted out his ship designs.
“Thanks. I’ll go talk to him.”
“I hope he gives you a spot. The expedition will be more fun with you on board.” Jeremy smiled, showing off his dimples once more. “The Minke is currently tied up off the Island of Gold so Hector can show it off to his investors.”
Down the hall, I stopped at the plaque commemorating the scientists lost on the Daedalus expedition. The knot in my gut took another twist.
Taking my time, I read all the names. They were in alphabetical order—meaning Dad was last. As I read ‘Dr. Wren’, I ran a finger over the raised text.
“I know you sent that message.”
Outside the university, New Venus’ endless sunset cast its warm glow on the white buildings. I stopped and leaned against a railing—only a thin tube of metal separated me from falling into the Shimmer below, but I didn’t care as the view was too beautiful.
The shifting clouds in the Lid far above undulated in the breeze. Dirigibles and other flying ships passed overhead, casting umber shadows across the city. In the layer below, the sparkling storms of the Shimmer twisted and turned like some of the glitter messes I’d made as a kid. I closed my eyes and pictured the time I’d coated Fred in purple and silver glitter glue.
“You need to take care of your toys,” Dad said. He crossed his arms over his chest and frowned at the little robot.
“But Dad, Fred is such a boring colour—just grey, not even shiny.” The child me balled my hands into fists. “He’s more perfect this way.”
Dad ran a finger along the huge blob of still-tacky glue in the middle of Fred’s chest. “What if he doesn’t like this?”
“Oh, I know he loves it. Isn’t that right, Fred?”
The robot’s eyes lit up. “Like Stella told me, glitter is the most prettiest thing.”
Dad pursed his lips. “I see you’ve started tinkering with Fred’s algorithms.”
Little me frowned. “Is that wrong?”
A breeze blew my hair into my face, bringing me back to the present. I pushed the lock behind my ear. It had taken a long time to clean all that glitter glue off Fred, but Dad stayed and helped—like he always did.
I fixed my gaze on the bridge leading to the Island of Gold and its glimmering domes coated in its namesake. If I’d had access to gold plating the day I coated Fred in the glitter glue, I would’ve made him shiny and gold instead. With a sigh, I rested my weight on my elbows. Now wasn’t the time for reminiscing; I had to come up with a plan before the Minke plunged out of reach.
If Hector had truly been a friend of Dad’s, there was a chance he’d take me on. But I needed to be bold in a way I’d never been before. I had to march up to that ship and introduce myself to Hector. Just the thought of it sent butterflies to my stomach.
“I gotta get going,” I said, forcing myself to stand up tall.
Holding my marble in my left hand, I set off towards the Island of Gold.
to be continued…