Truehearts & The Escape From Pirate Moon by Jake Macklem (ebook audio reader TXT) 📕

fair to each other, no one going to want to be fair to anyone. Or worse, they become favorable to Peoples just like them. And that, Ace,” Mick stood up, “ain’t ever fair.”

“So you knock on John to be fair and show him that you respect him?” Ace asked.

“Yep.”

“What about everybody else?”

“They see my sun. They know I’m consistent. They fear me.” Mick pointed to the ice cream vendor in the park. “You want ice cream?”

“I just had a brownie.” Ace thought she understood what Mick was teaching her but was not sure. “So Good People always act in love, reflecting the light of others back onto them. And when our light is reflected back onto us, if we fear, it is because we aren’t acting in love—we are acting in fear.”

Mick beamed. “If someone says something and it makes you rageful or mad, it might be that your fear is being exposed by their light.” He paused then asked, “You sure you don’t want ice cream?”

Ace smiled. “Do you want ice cream, Mick?”

“Well, now that you mention it.”

&

Ace moved her feet, but they still got wet. I don’t want to get up yet! She moved her feet again, into water. I didn’t sleep that close to the water. Ace opened her eyes; the waves had risen over a meter while she slept. She scooted back from the shore as her wits replaced sleep. The raft!

She jumped up and sprinted along the shore to where they had pulled the raft up. Her heart sank and she dropped to her knees when it was not there. It was the right thing to do—that’s what he said. He just left me. I shanked up one time and he just left.

“You’re up. Good,” Cam called from behind her.

Ace spun around to see Cam had pulled the raft away from the water.

“The water is rising fast, didn’t want the raft to get washed away. Sorry about what I said. I was angry.”

Scampering to her feet she ran up to Cam and threw her arms around him. “Thank you for not leaving me!”

Cam put an arm around her. “I told you, we’re getting off the moon. I won’t leave you behind.”

Ace felt the tears in her eyes. He acts in love and has shown me my fear.

“We should get a move on… Don’t know if this island is gonna get completely covered or not.” He motioned to the raft. “Help me carry it back down?”

Ace nodded as she wiped the tears away.

  17: Cam

As Cam read his GSS, a bubble of excitement started to build. They had drifted with the stronger currents toward a large plateau that rose about ninety meters. Now, comparing their position as they drifted through the islands of foothills to the blip on the tiny screen, they were less than twenty-five kilometers from the pickup zone.

Cam drank some water as he estimated the distance to the plateau. I’d say three, maybe three and a half once we clear the next hilltop. He could still see young vegetation and a pale hue to the mountainside where the edges of the cliffs showed signs of frequent erosion. Judging by the existing marks and erosion on the hills, he figured the water would rise another fifteen meters. Looking out over the murky waves, he shook his head. How could this not have been on the planetary report?

The raft lurched, Ace lifted her head. “What’s going on?” She sat up, rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

She notices the subtlest shifts in our movement. Sleeping on ships I bet. “Current’s picked up again.” Cam lifted his binoculars and examined the plateau. The landmass divided the sea in two directions. To the right, the water looked still, like a calm pond. To the left, it churned and swelled, crashing into white-tipped rapids. “I think the water is shallower up ahead. We should maneuver over and try to approach from the left side of the plateau.”

Ace slipped her spear-paddle into the water and together they started pulling the raft to the right. In fifteen minutes, the plateau towered above them as they fought the current. “I see why you wanted to go this way.”

“Just keep going, we’re almost there,” Cam urged. The point of no return was quickly approaching. “If we don’t clear the rapids, we’re gonna end up going left. I don’t know how well this raft would hold up on those waves!”

“I get it! Paddle harder!” She shouted back over the rushing water. A few moments later he heard Ace laugh,              “We’re there, Cowboy!”

Cam felt the raft glide onto the smooth water. He saw the ground just a few meters below the surface. Uneven rocks carried by the water over thousands of floods had gathered against the rising plateau, and over the countless years, had formed a natural break-wall. It’s like a dam. Why has it stopped flooding? Tunnels or caves equalizing the water pressure somewhere underwater? Maybe this area has water year-round and gets topped off during the floods. Looking over the still water he said, “This side is like a reservoir.”

“Uh-huh. Yeah. So, what’s that mean?”

“It means I think we're gonna be okay.” Cam set his paddle down. “You want a protein bar or an MRE? That made me hungry.”

Ace repositioned herself on the edge of the raft and kept paddling. “I’ll eat when you’re done. One of us should make sure we keep moving.” She winked.

Cam gave a wry smile. “I’ll make it quick then.” He pulled the string and let the reaction cook his carrots, mashed potatoes, and Salisbury steak. He studied the sedimentary rock layers of the gigantic plateau. Large veins of metals cut vertically in a lightning-like pattern. “Will you look at that?” His face split into a wide grin as he watched the