Unfortunately I couldn’t I was born with them The Squadron was gaining on me I could see Red Algae Ravine just ahead The Cemetery was at the bottom down a steep winding road I made an instant and dangerous decision Closing all six of my eyes grabbing my sensory enhancer and pulling it close to my body I tucked into a ball and flung myself off the rim of the ravine I hit the ground hard and hurtled down the canyon bouncing off jagged rocks that punctured my outer epidermal layer what you humans call skin The pain was so intense I couldn’t even scream Just when I thought I couldn’t bear it anymore I hit bottom bottom and crashed headfirst into the iron wall that surrounded the Cemetery My head was spinning but there was no time for dizzy Half the Squadron were up on the rim firing laser beams at me while the other half were scrambling down the road also taking shots at me I staggered to my feet and made my way to the secret keypad buried in a hidden compartment compartment of the wall Grandmother Wrinkle had instructed me to memorize the code but now my mind was blank I was codeless Stop The commander’s voice was near I couldn’t tell exactly how close it was but I knew it was too close Don’t be a fool Give yourself up he bellowed 4
The code The code It was right there in my memory but clouded by fear Grandmother picked it because it was my favorite character from all the Earth movies we secretly watched together Of course With my fingers trembling I reached out and punched in S-K-Y-W-A-L-K-E-R The heavy gate rumbled open I slipped through and pressed the button on the other side to close it Wait Was that a hand I saw reaching through the gate trying to grab me The piercing scream I heard as the gate slammed shut confirmed my suspicion The Cemetery was the final resting place for our planet’s obsolete vehicles My grandmother would often go there to gather spare parts for old spaceships that she repaired Because she had been the best master mechanic in the fleet she knew every piece of equipment that was there and had even secretly changed the code that opened the gate Over the last year she had snuck me in every afternoon to prepare for this very moment when I would escape the fate that was awaiting me She remembered a time before the New Squadron when life on our planet was colorful and creative and fragrant and her fervent wish was that I would have that life too 5
I knew every object in the Cemetery as well as my grandmother grandmother did They were like old friends I dodged my way across rusted-out spacecraft forging a path through shattered shattered interstellar fighters busted-up afterburners and an assortment of broken wings Citizen Short Nose the Squadron commander shouted using the vocal cord amplifier built into his neck We have you trapped You’ve given yourself no way out That’s what you think you robotic puppet of the state I thought I ducked behind the mountain of broken wings and pulled the metallic tarp off the faster-than-light vehicle Grandmother Wrinkle and I had rebuilt for my escape There it was but would it actually fly We never had the opportunity to test it As I climbed the ladder to the hatch I felt a searing pain in my arm My front eyes saw purple blood spurt from my shoulder as my rear eyes detected the soldier who had scaled the wall and shot me Clutching my shoulder I jumped into the vehicle and slid into the driver’s seat I buckled myself in with my good arm and pulled the hatch closed when suddenly it flew open again My sensory enhancer had sprung into action and was pushing the door open every time I tried to close it Oh no Not now I groaned 6
It snorted fiendishly I knew that snort It was reserved for only the most delicious of aromas I looked through the open hatch and saw what the attraction attraction was A single vine of honeywort had pushed through the pile of broken wings stretching its orange blossom up into the atmosphere My sensory enhancer was going wild from the sweet floral fragrance I was going wild from the constant ping of laser shots bouncing off the open hatch Those shots were coming from close range The Squadron was closing in I reached out and grabbed my sensory enhancer which had wrapped itself around the vine and was making deep grunting sounds as it inhaled the honeywort blossom I yanked it inside with a vengeance and slammed the hatch shut Your timing sucks I screamed at it pulling the orange blossom from its trunk For once do as I say In the human world I know you don’t make it a practice practice of yelling at your body parts But sensory enhancers can have a mind of their own They respond to all stimuli That’s what is both wonderful and tricky about them and that’s what makes them dangerous I pressed the ignition and the panel lit up showing my destination coordinates That was a good sign Fighting 7
