• Although the weather was beautiful and the view of the mountain range was fantastic, the tension and silence that had built itself between Celica and Peter remained until the end of the first day. Despite Celica's numerous attempts to start a coversation, Peter would simply grunt or shrug and walk a little faster.

    The narrow road on which they traveled was actually carved out of the side of the mountain itself, so there was steep slope on the right side of them, and steep wall on the left. There were several large, round clots in the road, obviously intended for travelers such as themselves. Just as the brilliant sun passed over the mountains, they approached one.

    During their trek, Celica had noticed that Peter was carrying a large bag, out of which he pulled a sleeping bag, a fire kit, some food, and a large bottle of water. He set up the fire, filled a pot with dehydrated meat and some of the water. While that boiled, he looked crossly over at Celica. "So did you pass out because you Jumped too much?"

    Celica was surprised by his sudden willingness to talk. She was pleased by this, even if it meant returning the frown and bitter tone. "Well, I don't know," Celica said, shrugging, "I didn't feel that tired before hand, so I don't think it would make me pass out that easily."

    "That's what I thought too, because look what I found stuck in your leg." He dug through his bag and extracted a small, narrow object. "This is a police weapon." He said, holding it out to her. "Don't touch the end, it might still have some sedatives on it."

    It was a syringe, but very sleek and aerodynamic-looking. It even had fins on the bottom edges. "Someone must have shot it at you right before you Jumped." Peter said solemnly, and held out his hand for the syringe again. "But the kind of police that use this don't live on Earth."

    Celica felt a bubbling, terrible fear tear through her nerves. "You mean," She said, her eyes wide, "They somehow got a Terran policeman onto Earth?"

    "Yes." Peter said. "They have a Jumper on their side."

    They were both silent for a long time after that. The only sounds were the fire crackling and the water bubbling. He removed the pot from the spit it had been hanging from and set it down next to him. "That was the reason I carried you all of that way, because I was afraid if I left you there, whoever was after us would find you."

    Celica's mental image of who was following her was now larger. Dozens and dozens of POCC officers, the Terran police force, with their SWAT-style armor, and now a faceless Jumper, who seemed to be sneering from the front of the congregation. With a twinge of guilt, she saw Michael towards the far edge of the group, rubbing his hands together and cackling madly.

    She immediately shook her head free of these thoughts, and accepted the small parcel of meat that Peter offered her. "I don't have enough food for all of us, here, I only got enough for me. I thought you would be leaving, and everything." Celica winced and immediately felt guilty. Would she forever be a burden on his shoulders? At some points, literally. Celica thought.

    "Oh." Celica said simply, because she had no idea what to say.

    "We'll stop in the next town, there are several on this path before we get to Parwet."

    "Couldn't I just Jump us there? That would be a lot easier." Offered Celica.

    "Oh, no you couldn't." He said, and laughed humorlessly. "You're exhausted as it is. Besides, I don't know what was in that syringe. Perhaps what got into your system only takes effect when you Jump. It might send out a signal of where we are, or it might weaken you even further. It might even kill you."

    He said the last sentence with great emphasis. "Maybe it's nothing at all, and we're wasting time and effort here. Amos could be anywhere, being tortured or imprisoned. He was with you, remember? You even said that it's illegal."

    "But what if it actually is something, and I let you do it." Peter was very serious now, but wasn't making eye contact. He did seem very concerned about this, but it didn't appear to be his only worry.

    "So basically, I'm never allowed to Jump again." Celica said, trying to shoot down his idea before she started to believe it.

    "Well, just for now. We can get you to a doctor in Parwet, and they can extract whatever's in your bloodstream. For now, though, we've got to play it safe. You can't risk leaving your family to wonder forever, can you?"

    Celica hoped he wouldn't use that card. She sighed deeply, and said, "No, I suppose not."

    "Good. Well, let's get some sleep. The weather's not that cold at night, this was just a precaution." He said, putting a hand on the rolled up sleeping bag.

    He just rolled over, put his back to the fire, and didn't speak again. Celica, not being a boy, couldn't just go to sleep with all of these thoughts in her head. She looked up at the sky, scattered with stars. She wondered blankly whether or not Earth and Terra had the same constellations. She couldn't find any major constellations, not even the big dipper. What she did find, though, was what looked like a fox kit and a puppy wrestling together, tumbling and nibbling playfully.

    With her mind on this smile-inducing image, she went to sleep.