"Dammit Mara, do I have to wake you up every morning?" Lyra's voice, sharp and insistent, sliced through the thick morning silence like an unwelcome alarm. I barely wanted to open my eyes, the warmth of my bed tempting me to stay buried beneath the covers just a little longer.

I rolled away from the bright, relentless light filtering through the thin curtains and pulled the blanket tighter over my tired frame, desperate to drown out the scintillating sun and the familiar, irritating voice of ...