“What the hell are they doing?” Elara leaned forwards to look out the window.

Romy turned and peered into empty space, jerking back as the other pod whirled across the window in front of her. Romy laughed as Phobos and Deimos waved, floating upside-down inside the spiralling craft.

“Who’s driving?” Romy pushed her white-blonde hair behind one ear.

“I couldn’t see Thrym at all.”

“Poor Thrym.”

Elara cackled. “You’d think he’d know better than to turn his back on those two by now.”

The girls were first to make it back to Earth Dock. Romy dragged their bag of space junk to the weaponry chute where it would be reused as projectile missiles in the battlers. She listened to the bellowed shouts of Thrym as the boys’ pod docked. The pod entrance retracted and she saw that the twins stood in front of him looking suitably chastised—apart from the unconcealed grins on their faces. It was the eyes. How did they do it?

“They tied me up with their socks!” Thrym shook his head, gaze flat.

Romy did her best not to laugh at his exasperation. Elara didn’t hold back, and her laughter didn’t abate in the slightest under the full force of Thrym’s glare.

He whirled on the twins, holding their socks high. “These. Are now mine.”

The smirks on the twins’ faces disappeared. Romy whistled low. She didn’t blame them. You only received one pair of socks per month. Pulling down the top of his suit, Thrym shoved the twins’ socks inside before storming out of the docks.

Deimos draped his arm around his twin’s shoulders. “Pho, we might have annoyed our brother,” he pondered.

Romy swore Phobos’s eyes sparkled with unshed tears. Perhaps Thrym was overly harsh.

The light-coloured twin shook his head in stunned bewilderment. “I believe you might be right, Dei.”

CHAPTER TWO

“Water vapour was the biggest secondary contributor to the global warming effect.” The lecturer cut off as Romy slipped into the room.

She stood to attention, arm raised in salute. “My apologies for interrupting, Vice-commander Warner.”

It wasn’t unusual for someone in high command to teach these lessons. With the small population on board the eight stations, most had more than one role.

“Take your seat, Soldier Rosemary.”

Romy saluted, wincing at the use of her given name. She quickly took the closest seat, ignoring the whispers behind her.

“We were discussing the Critamal,” he said for her benefit. “Cadet Icarus, please continue.”

A boy recited in a calm voice, “NASA first became aware of the Critamal in 2050, after global warming had already damaged Earth beyond human repair. The life forms aboard the orbitos were intended to incubate until Earth became inhabitable once more, but in actuality they were forced to become soldiers—to protect Earth from the Critamal.”