Nice work," I commented drily. "How old was that littlest one? Five? Did she put up a terrible fight?""I feared for my life," Zach said with a perfectly straight face. "You must be bored, Julia. You usually have a sharper sense of humor than that.""Eat thorns.""Well, it is about lunch time. Let's go grab a bite.

There has to be beauty left in the world, Julia," said Kiyu. "Otherwise we have nothing.

Not many people bothered to look for beauty beyond the greenhouses. They went about life with their heads down, just praying to get through the day, to feed themselves and their family. No one ever did anything to make it better.