Chapter 1Flight from New Durham to Old Sylva Station
May 23–24, 2259, Monday–Tuesday
It was here, in the quiet of flight, between where they were going, and where they had been, that loving John-Caleb was often the easiest for Quentin.
What they knew, where they had been, New Raleigh, Triangle, the Misión Alianza—the Alliance Mission, in New Durham—at home, their log cabin in the pine woods outside the Alliance compound, receded further and further behind them. Ahead, a place where they had never been, a place waiting to be known. The information sent by the Western Appalachian District Council had been sketchy at best.
Quentin wished they could stay in the warm darkness of this snug sleeper cabin on this westbound freight shuttle, their naked bodies spooned together. He liked this pri
