Hard Light (NaNoWriMo15)

Chapter 8 - Intruder

Dedicated to @46Kibahime for the amazing picture of Leah teaching Kieran about her Light-sheet tracing technique thingo (end of chapter!) ;D

The rest of the day went much the same way, and by the time Leah climbed back up the ladder to the surface she was glad to see the sun.

Kieran eyed her heart as she stepped out into the light and stretched her fingers skyward. "Make sure you get a full recharge. I don't want any panics underground tomorrow."

Leah eyed him. His words had softened since this morning, even if she wasn't entirely sure why. "Will do."

"Good."

He made her drive the glider back to their lodgings after checking that she had enough Light to get them back. The feel of the wind in her face as she raced it across the desert was more than enjoyable now she knew what she was doing. They arrived at their lodgings far too quickly, and it was with a twinge of regret that Leah covered it over.

Kieran ordered them all to recharge before coming inside, and with an hour of daylight left, the fourteen of them gathered on the open courtyard on the building's roof. Kieran and a few others left after the first twenty minutes, but it was after he left that Sef caught Leah's eyes.

"Hey, Leah!" he called, waving her over from her chair. "Come sit with us."

Well aware of the glares of the others around him, Leah went to decline the offer but Sef's insistence ended up with him picking up her chair with her still on it and placing it beside his own.The familiar swirling warmth in her recharging heart crystal was at odds with the cold nerves in the depths of her gut as she sat beside them.

"So," said Sef. "Kieran was just telling us how you draw the murals. Did you really figure out how to make the Light sheets by yourself?"

"Um, yea," said Leah.

It turned out that, despite their lacking Radiant features, many of the expedition team were able to harden Light. After a quick demonstration from Leah, most of them--Sef especially--had the technique downpat.

"Wow," said one of them said, a girl called Mira. She stretched the sheet of Light between her fingers, manipulating it until it finally set. "That's pretty cool."

Another one who looked more human than Radiant and was having more trouble with it, Dale, didn't look entirely happy about it. "Considering how much more time we have to spend drawing because Kieran's told us to get specific on the details of the murals now, it's the least the newbie can do to shorten the process."

"Why is that, anyway?" said Mira, looking at Leah. "The border interest?"

"I think there's some kind of code in it," said Leah, giving a careless shrug. She wasn't entirely comfortable with explaining the details of it yet. "The more I have, the easier it'll be to work out."

"Still more work than I signed up for," grumbled Dale, standing up, leaving, and taking the momentary inclusion that'd teased Leah with him.

"Eh... don't mind Dale," said Sef as Leah squished her hands between her knees. "He gets grumpy when he's hungry, and the snacks we bring down to the ruins don't stave it off. He doesn't like sketchwork either, he prefers it when we have to excavate."

"It's fine," said Leah, attempting a smile. "I'm going to go get started with the documenting thing anyway. I'll talk to you later."

Sef's disappointment was more than a little obvious. "Did you need help? I can show you what to do or just help you compile, if you want. I used to help Terrell with it--"