He wanted to throw up. He held his hand clamped over his mouth as they passed through the halls to some unknown destination Cassio seemed to have in mind.

Once the question had reared its head, it was all he could think about. Was Yngvir dead? Was he killed? Did he end his own life?

From what he understood of the tracking system Coppertail used, it was mostly managed by a powerful AI system that could predict potential criminal activity. He also knew, every sector had a smaller engine that kept track of all life signatures as a method of population census on a cycle basis. Every day, anyone could access the Hub and request the population census and the obituaries. It had a 100% accuracy rate. It could even tell temporary deaths from true deaths.

But 3 cycles?

He stopped in his tracks. He had to know. "Cassio. I need to check something."

"Check what? We don't have time to waste." Cassio's footsteps didn't slow, nor did he turn his head to even address him.

Hemlock insisted, grabbing onto the ribbon like trail the sleeves of Cassio's jacket had. Cassio jerked to a stop and whipped around with a snarl to his lips. "Grab me again, and I'll put a needle in your thigh."

He let go, raising both his hands, but he repeated, "I need to check the Hub. If Yngvir's dead, he would be on the census."

Cassio, paused, as if he hadn't even thought of that option. Hemlock saw the moment when the possibility had sunk in and taken the color from Cassio's skin. "Right," Cassio said, a slight scratchiness forming in his throat.

They stopped at a panel, Cassio quickly tapping through the screens for the population census. The screen zipped quickly, lighting up with the most recent census.

CYCLE 7.018.12.9 : DECEASED

BUCKEYE

MOSSHAIR

MANZANITA

SANDSTONE

No sign of Yngvir's name. Cassio swiped for the previous cycle report.

CYCLE 7.018.12.8 : DECEASED

DAISY

DUNITE

COQUINA

Cassio's hand shook as he paused a moment before swiping for three cycles ago.

CYCLE 7.018.12.7 : DECEASED

FENNEL

SCISSORTAIL

When Yngvir's name failed to show, Cassio's shoulder slumped and he exited the screen with a shaky breath. "Thank Psion…" Hemlock heard him mutter under his breath. Then Cassio's eyes turned hard again. But it didn't make any sense.

If Yngvir wasn't dead, and there hadn't been any ships to disembark, how was Yngvir hiding? The life sign indicators clearly show he's still alive, yet the more powerful tracker that Coppertail had used showed no sign of him.

"Cassio? What's going on?"

Cassio shook his head, "I can't say here. Let's get to somewhere safer."

"Safer?" Why would they be in any danger? The gauntlet wrapped around his hand seemed to say otherwise. No one else would possible have access to firearms. They were strictly banned on ship without the authorization from head of weaponry. Someone they'd recently received help from.

They veered off into another sector, though this time, it wasn't exactly what he'd been expecting. They sat inside a laundering room, where you could drop your parcels of dirty clothes in a designated laundry bag labeled with your room code, and they would bring them back clean in about 3 hours time. Cassio locked the door, something he hadn't been aware possible until just now. Incredible how much he hadn't known before this adventure searching for Yngvir.

Cassio folded his arms around him and took a deep breath.

"Yngvir isn't human." Cassio said.

Hemlock blanched, a part of him that had been lodged firmly in reality somehow ripped out and now floating precariously around his head, untethered. A very unpleasant feeling. "What?" He said. Mostly because he couldn't believe it. Partially because maybe he could but didn't want to.

"He comes from a different life system than humans. A different planetary system." Cassio unfolded his arms and paced two strides to the right, then two strides back, all that the tiny space would really allow.

"The Zvenigrad only carries humans though? The descendants of Old Earth?" His own statements changed into questions. Was everything they had known and been taught a lie?

"No… definitely not. There are many types of beings on this ship. But most of them go through the assimilation process and do not remember they are not human."

Hemlock frowned, feeling like something very world-shattering was being revealed to him. Something that might make him a target. "Why are you telling me all this?" He said, panicked.

"Because, Yngvir comes from the system called Psion."

"Psion? Like the God of all things Unexplained and Mysterious?"

"Yes. It was their form of religion. Something the Zvenigrad has a long history with." Cassio bit into his lip, working it between his teeth. "How much do you know about the force?"

"Only that the force is what differentiates those who pilot and those who don't?" Hemlock felt no confidence in those words, considering how Cassio was looking at him.

Cassio began pacing again, "How do you think humans were able to use the force?"

"We … have always been able to?"

Cassio paused in his pacing, then threw out a hand at him, "In all those holovids from Old Earth, did you ever see anyone being able to use the force like the Pilots do?"

"No? Not unassisted. There were anti-grav technology that was developed sometime in the 25th century I think based on the holovids." He vaguely remembered paying attention to the dates on the holovids. He was more interested in the strange concepts of marriage and monogamy they had.

"Ever wonder why?"

Hemlock shook his head. It wasn't in their nature to wonder why. They weren't trained that way.

"The ability comes from our history with Psion."

"So Yngvir… can use the force?"

Cassio nodded. "It's the only way he could be deflecting the security system. He must be using his powers to hide his identity. Possibly as someone else."

Hemlock swallowed hard. Yngvir, the man who he'd been bunkmates for, someone he thought was on the same level as him, was actually an alien who could pass for a god in his tiny ship-enclosed world. He felt like he should sit down. His head spun. So he did.

Cassio didn't say anything, though he probably wanted to mention their tight timeline.

Hemlock sat, hands on his knees, heart beating hard in his chest, and a cold wash dousing him. This had not been the answer he'd wanted when he'd found out Yngvir wasn't dead.

This was worse.

It hurt. Like a blade stuck in his chest and twisted around to see how he squirmed.

When the fuzz in his head cleared and he didn't feel like he was going to faint, he looked up at Cassio. "So how are we going to find him?"

"We need to have someone else who can use the force to help us. Someone more powerful than him."

"And who might that be?"

"Hawthorn." Cassio said as he held up his paralyzer gun and pulled the trigger. The needle punctured Hemlock’s neck, and he didn't have a chance to make a noise of pain, because it passed through his voice box, the paralyzing toxins spreading through him quickly. He couldn't move his head or his chest. His hand twitched just before he could make an effort to fight back.

Then Cassio leaned down and pulled the dagger collar off him, replacing it with the string of balls that had been attached to his belt.

"This won't hurt." He heard Cassio say, just before the new collar clicked into place and his mind went black.