‘They say you always remember yourfirst…’‘I – I feel so weak.’‘It’ll pass,’ she assured him.She kissed his cheek.He managed to give ...er a feeble smile. ‘I understand,Evelyn,’ he whispered. ‘You had to do this. I’ll never hateyou for it.’The words made her lips tremble. ‘I – thank you.’She grabbed the knife from the floor and began cuttingthrough the ropes that wrapped around his legs.‘Let me see you again,’ he blurted.She almost dropped the knife. ‘W – what?’His eyes were earnest. ‘I said I. This rebellion would be quelled within hours, and then they could turn about and head back to the Pinwheel, this was an unwelcome diversion from their operations on the Betelgeusian front.The atmosphere of the planet buffeted the dropship, Korza straining against his safety harness as he checked his XMR, configured as a submachine gun for close quarters gunfights with a savage bayonet attached to the short barrel. He wore black UNN body armor with a full-faced visor, his orange, furry ears. Her ebony brows have the form and charm of the bow of Kama, the god of love, and beneath her long silken lashes the purest reflections and a celestial light swim, as in the sacred lakes of Himalaya, in the black pupils of her great clear eyes. Her teeth, fine, equal, and white, glitter between her smiling lips like dewdrops in a passion-flower’s half-enveloped breast. Her delicately formed ears, her vermilion hands, her little feet, curved and tender as the lotus-bud, glitter with the. .. in an accident!" My mom cried harder.I felt sick and started screaming, "Jackie!? What happened to Jackie!"Mom leapt to where I stood, my own tears forming quickly. "Oh, Penelope ... Oh ... Oh!" She held me tight against her, trembling, her tears wetting my neck."Is she alright? Mom!?"She sobbed against me a moment, then said with great sadness, "no ... no ... she didn't make it ... oh, Penelope!"It didn't really sink in then. I knew tremendous loss and anguish in slow motion. I felt like I.