《The Eleven Houses》 Chapter 1: The King of Gol Chapter 1: The King of Gol Year: 7097/03 ¡°He needs to be prepared, Hellen,¡± the old man said in feverous hushed tones, needing to drive to the point. ¡°What for, Lor? He isn''t sick, what could he possibly need to prepare for?¡± said Hellen in a strained voice, her disease had hit her throat more than the old soldiers. ¡°They took Dill, didn''t they?¡± ¡°Dill was sick, he isn''t!¡± she hissed, ¡°What do you think they are going to do with him when we are gone? Just leave him here? Keep the outpost going just because he is still here?¡± trying to show reason. ¡°What if they come down for him, maybe that¡¯s the best thing that we can do for him. He isn''t sick, Lor, they could care for him, give him a proper upbringing, get him off of this god-forsaken rock and hand him a future¡± ¡°Then why haven''t they, eh?¡± ¡°I don''t know, I am not friendly with them like you are, why don¡¯t you ask them?¡± she accused. ¡°She at least knows that something has to be done, Hellen!¡± there was a scuffle that told Meno that she had tried animatedly to stop him from speaking so loud, probably with the closest thing she could pick up with a threat of bonking him on the head. ¡°Shhhh ! You will wake him,¡±. He gave a small chuckle. ¡°He¡¯s been listening to us this entire time, my dear, haven''t you boy?¡± Meno did not stir, he did not want to explain yet again that he was not going to go, he knew how childish it sounded. It wasn''t because he was afraid of the world outside, it did in fact, excite him a great deal, the stories that he had heard had painted a rich tapestry of the Galaxy and he wanted to see it, he wanted to see it all, but not at the cost of these two. He also didn''t stir because he didn''t want to get in the middle of this repeated argument, being used as a prop to showcase one¡¯s point to the other, pinballing between the two while not being offered an opinion by either. Old cranks, he thought with a smile. ¡°You see¡± Hellen whispered, ¡°He sleeps strongly that one, he works hard and he rests harder¡± Meno could hear that she was smiling, she always did when she delivered that line. ¡°But really, Lor, I know that she might, but what if she can¡¯t? If he leaves this place and they see that as a crime then his entire life disappears before him¡± This argument had been revisited countless times, more and more recently with their deteriorating health. It made Meno uncomfortable, it made him sad, and he didn''t want to focus on a time without them. ¡°There is not much that she is incapable of, trust me¡± ¡°She clearly can¡¯t see that bloody kettle on my window sill, can she?¡± * ¡°You aren''t concentrating¡± Hellen snapped to Meno the next day, ¡°You need to feel like the air rushing through the body, fortifying and empowering every part, it should feel like you can push it out from every pore¡± she explained. ¡°Again!¡±. The rooms that they sat in were Meno¡¯s classroom, training room, and recreation room. It had been converted for him some time ago and it held his makeshift training equipment, books that belonged to Swan, who had passed some years back now. All of them were written by Swan himself, in his own hand as nothing was permitted to be brought to this town when they all first arrived. Meno had read every volume, some of them multiple times. They were after all the life work of a man who had dedicated himself to the pursuit of knowledge but had no way of expressing its great power, or artistry to the world. He had always seemed to long for some great debate that he could have with the people of Gol, and Meno had often wondered if he had written the books in order to arm his hoped-for opponent. He had taught Meno of course, but Meno had been young then, and some of the concepts were complex, so he had left the books for him, knowing that the writing would last longer than he did. He was unfortunately right. The Professor had been a strange man, to say the least. He had ranted and raved about how political structures were warped and manipulated to serve the Autarch, and how tech was eroding people''s talents and potential. He drove most of the town mad with it, but he was a man of deep compassion, Meno knew. He didn''t go off on a tangent because it didn''t fit into a great order that he believed should exist, some type of design that was off and caused his anxiety to tick. No, he said it because of the injustices that he perceived, as limiting people. ¡®One should be very careful in agreeing to limitation, for it creeps up and tightens around you. Soon, your perceived freedom is at the permission of someone else¡¯ He seemed to have a slight block in terms of being able to deal with people in a ¡®regular¡¯ - as Hellen would say - way, but he had always done everything that he could for the people in Gol. He had fixed water systems and made soap, and also showed the best way to stimulate the growth of the mushrooms on the outskirts of town. A food source that had become their mainstay. There were no animals on Gol, no fields. The disease had done away with all of that. The only piece of furniture in the room was an old wooden table, that bore the marks of being repaired multiple times, with a wooden chair that Hellen now sat on. Despite the disease, she was still a robust woman, strong, very opinionated and above all, kind. She wore a ragged old dress that came up to her knees and shoes that had been sown over countless times, Meno wasn''t even sure what the original colour was. She had wide eyes that were now almost always strained in her struggle for sight and a button nose that sat above her ever-smiling mouth. She wasn''t always smiling, she just had a face that looked it. ¡®I was blessed with a cheery disposition¡¯ she would prooudly say. Then proceed to throw a pan at you. The room retained a green tinge from the light that came through the fog. The fog, hung over the town, a town in a valley, poisoned and cursed by disease. She had struggled with her movement for some time now, and she wheezed even in this position, her plump seeming to drag her down. She occasionally brought a handkerchief up to her nose, but merely held it there as she watched Meno more than blew her nose. He was sitting on the floor, his legs crossed and eyes closed as he focused on drawing in the energy, and expressing it outwards. He focused on pulling it into a centre point of his body, feeling slight tingles within him, and then expressing those outward, and then repeating the process. He had been running through this training for years now. ¡®You draw out the natural energy within yourself that is held in every cell in your body, you use this energy and push it out of yourself. Then once that energy alters the natural energies around you, you draw it back in and empower yourself. This gives you great strength, this is Heu.¡¯ she would say as though this was the most sensical thing in the known galaxy. He sat without his shirt on, not wanting to dirty it with sweat. Soap was something that needed to be made, they did receive some from the soldiers that kept them in this town, but it wasn''t much and not often. A small little block for three people, and it stung when used. Meno was seventeen, or eighteen they believed, nobody really knew. He had been dropped off on the outskirts of the town as a baby, wrapped in a rag and nothing else. The town had taken him in, they cared for and raised him, and they taught him how to read, write, do arithmetic and think. The town had taken its effect on him, his skin was a sickly colour, having not seen much of the sun, and the fog that engulfed the town often didn''t let much through. His hair was tied up in rat tails that generally held themselves in position nowadays, but despite the shaggy appearance he was strong, well built from the training that he had received from Hellen and Mr. Dimitri and his eyes held a sharpness and eagerness, something that was always noted by Swan. ¡°Are you sure I¡¯m not doing it?¡± Meno said indignantly, his eyes still closed. She chuckled, he opened his eyes and looked at her deeply. Her skin had greyed now, her eyes cataraxed, her hair was rat-tailed, and her dress had lost all colour, some time ago now. Though she remained plump, and had the kindest face he had ever known. Though he had only ever known just shy of forty faces in his life. He remembered all of them. ¡°Why don¡¯t we try again tomorrow¡± she said with a kind smile, ¡°Maybe you will get it then¡± Came the mantra that ended all of the sessions in this training. She knew that if she had told him he didn''t have the talent, he would reject it, and would continue trying anyway, ¡®I don''t know where you get that from¡¯ she would say knowing all too well. Meno knew that she had only kept this up as a kindness to him, a request from him to keep trying. Swan had always said if you are going to fail at anything, fail at giving up. Meno had always thought that it was quite sappy but appreciated the sentiment. He would always deliver a thumbs up after this and would receive blank faces staring back at his eager one. That had been the first time that Meno realised that Professor Swan was not, cool. He took the words though, they did resonate with him. ¡°Alright¡± Meno said jumping up from his spot and stretching his arms into the air, ¡°I really feel like I¡¯m getting it though¡± It was true, many a time he had mentioned to her that he felt deeply refreshed after his attempts, he put it down to bring the energy into himself, she on the other hand would tell him it was from him sitting still and not doing anything for some time. He was not one for sitting around, and so he had conceded, but the feeling had always remained. ¡°So? Are you a master yet?¡± said Mr. Dimitri from the door, ¡°No,¡± she said ¡°Almost,¡± he said. Mr. Dimitri smiled weakly. He was once a grand soldier in the armies of the Hulfaen, the old King¡¯s army. He still held the personality of a soldier, strong, firm and disciplined, but his body had sunken with the disease. He now stood hunch-backed looking at Meno, leaning on his walking stick that he carried everywhere now. His hair had become wispy and his skin clung to his bones loosely. His eyes, however, never lost their look of determination, their focus. ¡°Well, let¡¯s see if that mastery has diminished the rest of your abilities, or added to them¡± he wheezed as he stepped in through the door. ¡°I¡¯ll get supper started for us,¡± said Hellen, standing from her chair with effort. Meno knew that she didn''t want the help, but he stepped forward and offered his hand, ¡°I¡¯m fine dear¡± she said, not looking at him. It was only midday, but with her movements being slow, the soup took some time. They were limited in their little village, so the soup was a mix of herbs and mushrooms that were foraged. Meno naturally foraged these himself, first thing in the mornings, a duty he had taken upon himself a few years back now. He had watched her try and move to the edge of town with difficulty then, and she moved much better than she did now. ¡°Now, let¡¯s begin with the first form, and focus on Hellen¡¯s training while you are doing it¡± said the old soldier who stood with his back against the wall, ready to analyze Meno¡¯s movements as he lowered to a half crouch and thrust his fist forward to start, form one. This was a usual practice from Mr. Dimitri, repetition of the first forms before training started, Meno never minded. It was a reminder of the man''s past, his former days as a soldier dictated how he lived his life, and how he trained Meno. He was sometimes subject to low moods when he thought that Meno did not notice him watching. Looking over Meno with deep pity and sadness, something that he would immediately pull away from when he knew that he was being observed. This was not a man that felt any comfort in showing emotion and was always concerned more with others, and keeping theirs up. He would go to the sick of this village when they battled through their last breaths, telling them that all would be okay and that he would handle things, they no longer needed to strain themselves. He was a man who was ready to shoulder others'' burdens, not out of shame of that person being unable to carry it themselves, but almost as though he saw this as his duty to those people. It was no crime that he was trying to pay off, but rather, as Hellen would say, the mark of a man of true service. Meno admired this about the old soldier, that he would in the face of inevitable pain and death, rise early, look for where he could help, what load he could take on and how he could better the lives of those around him. Meno endeavoured to learn as much from him as he could and had always felt a small tinge of guilt that he preferred that Mr. Dimitri and Hellen had lasted longer than the others. He had loved them all, even the ones that did not have as much time for him as he did for them, but Mr. Dimitri was his first hero, mentor and trainer, and Hellen, was his defacto mother, though she would never say as much. Hellen had stayed out of the way during Mr. Dimitri¡¯s training, and gave the impression that she did not like that he was receiving it, but knew that it was important. The two trainings were meant to be combined, drawing in the energy and then using it to strengthen one''s muscles and reflexes, but Hellen never liked the ¡®fighting¡¯ focus of it all. Meno knew that this had been an argument previously, but he thought that she had conceded knowing that the man was a soldier. Or she had compromised on this to win another argument, that is a far more likely scenario. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. ¡®He¡¯s too young to be a soldier, Yor¡¯ would come the words from Professor Swan, when Meno was still only around 5 or 6, ¡®He doesn''t seem to believe you¡¯ would reply the old soldier in response to Meno¡¯s willingness to be all that Yor Dimitri was and embodied. ¡°What are you finding difficult with Hellen¡¯s training?¡± he asked while walking with his stick around Meno who knew too well not to stop his training, lest he be smacked with said stick. The man may have been feeble now, but he still swung that stick with the vigour of a much stronger man. ¡°I¡¯m trying to figure it out¡± he replied with strain as he did pushups with rocks from the stream atop his back. ¡°I feel like I am doing it, but I am not pushing any energy out¡± The old man considered this, ¡°Why do you feel like it¡¯s working?¡± ¡°Internally¡­¡± Meno breathed out sharply and in again as he pushed up with his arms, ¡°I feel everything that Hellen says I should feel¡± he relaxed in his push for a moment and Mr. Dimitri placed the end of his walking stick on the rocks and pushed down, Meno exasperatedly laughed and continued, ¡°It¡¯s just that it¡­it doesn''t reflect outwardly¡± ¡°It is a complex training that she offers, one that not everyone is capable of¡­¡± ¡°Well, I am!¡± the old man chuckled, ¡°Then tell me how you can accomplish it¡± Meno considered this for a moment. There was no such thing as ¡®unable¡¯ or ¡®inability¡¯ with Mr. Dimitri. He would never allow for such a thing to be said. There was only the problem and figuring out how to overcome it. ¡°I will¡± Meno said, not an answer without explanation of how he would do this, but that he would endeavour to develop a plan to overcome the challenge. ¡°Good. You need more rocks, you have outgrown this weight, before dinner I want you to go and get three large ones from the stream¡± Meno stopped himself from swearing loudly, and hung his head. ¡°Yeah¡­okay¡± * Meno collected all of the rocks from the stream and placed them outside of the training room after his training with Mr. Dimitri. He had walked through the town that he knew so well. Meno had been raised by the entire town of Gol, a town named for the moon that it was on. An old timber town that was held by the fog. They had all been placed within the fence that surrounded Gol, keeping them in, with the small military outpost hidden within the forest just outside the boundary. It held three or four guards at any time. Some of the towns folk, the old crow, had told him that the fences went up first, and then the mist had descended. Meno smiled thinking of Dot, she hated everything. He had grabbed a book from the training room and then made his way home after stopping by the stream once more to wash off. The waters were cold in the shallow stream. There were no fish, no frogs, no sign of life in the waters at all. He made his way back, following the scent of the soup that Hellen had been making. ¡°Reading that one again?¡± she said to him as he poured over one of Professor Swan¡¯s books at the dinner table. Meno had collected the rocks and placed them before the training house for review the next morning before he had come home and washed himself, now sitting at the table with his hair still damp he was pouring over a book, sure that it would give him some clue as to how to accomplish his goal of completing Hellen¡¯s training. He looked up at her as she shuffled her bowl over to the table, Mr. Dimitri and himself both had theirs in front of them already. ¡°He¡¯s the one, isn''t he? The best, Professor Swan always said¡± Meno said trying to find any clue on the pages that would lead him to a possible answer. ¡°That thing caused nothing but trouble, he did¡± she said laying her tattered napkin down on her lap as she began eating. The ¡®thing¡¯ that she referred to was a young boy, the story that Professor Swan had written down at the request of Meno, the story of the last Sha-En, who in response to his House being destroyed by the Kryptea had overcome them in a single battle. Meno had asked many times whether the story was real or not, to which he received the answer, ¡®no, of course not¡¯ from Hellen, and ¡®Yes, of course, though it has been embellished somewhat¡¯ from Professor Swan, and ¡®There were always rumours¡¯ from Mr. Dimitri. It was a broadly discussed story in the town and was often put down as a way to mark the awful crimes of the Kryptea. After all, it was a fact that they had destroyed House Sha-En and had therefore incurred their punishment from the Autarch of service to the throne. It was a way for people to understand the story and sympathise with the Sha-En. The story was only some thirty years old or so, though Professor Swan had said that it was reminiscent of many stories from memoriam, a young boy, taking revenge for the crimes committed against his people and was probably some form of retelling for modern-day purposes. ¡°They say, that he was the most accomplished at wielding Heu, something that you are trying very hard to teach me¡± he said cheekily, which was always a risk with her. ¡°By they, you mean Swan¡± she said sharply, ¡°He filled your head with too much nonsense¡± she admonished dismissively. Meno merely smiled at this as she dipped her head down and focused on eating. She had always been like this, she had never had any time for ¡®nonsense¡¯ like philosophy, theory or anything that could not deliver tangible results. She was pragmatic and believed in hard work as the only measure of a person''s worth. She would work until absolute exhaustion and then sleep with a smile that night. She had had children herself, children that she was taken away from when brought to this place. She had been a House Maid, though she had never shared with Meno which house, nor which persons she was in service to. Dot, who had been Hellen¡¯s closest friend while she was alive, an older nutty lady with a cackle of a laugh and a sharp word delivered with a smile to anyone she deemed worthy of it had told him once that she had been sent here for a crime that she had committed against the family that she served and was therefore ashamed to even mention them as not to bring shame upon that family. ¡®They twisted her mind you see little thing, she still feels beholden to them, even though they threw her in with us. Rotten little stinkers, the whole lot of ¡®em¡¯ she had said in secret while foraging for mushrooms in Meno¡¯s youth. He had decided then that Hellen¡¯s story was none of his business, and that he would not allow anything that happened off Gol to dictate his feelings toward the people that cared for him, ¡°Regardless, even if it is nonsense, there is always some truth in stories, right?¡± ¡°Yes, well, he also doesn¡¯t exist, so perhaps if you just try harder,¡± she said with a cocked eyebrow at him, though a smile was being held back. * Meno stabbed the shovel into the ground and wiped his forehead, his calloused hands no longer bleed, they no longer opened at the labour of digging graves. He looked down at the now-filled earth and exhaled deeply. His eyes shifted to Hellen Milton¡¯s neighbours, just stones to mark their graves, no names attached to them, there was no need, nobody would ever come back for them here, but Meno knew who rested in each, he knew their names, their stories, their teachings. These were the people that had raised him. Sixty-two was the total now. Meno had not dug all of the graves, he was too young when some of them had succumbed, but his number was now thirty-seven graves, that had been dug, and filled by his hands. He placed his hands together to offer a prayer of thanks to Hellen, the woman who had taught him how to read and write and cook, the woman who had shown him how to clean clothing, and most of all, how to care for others. She had taken care of all of them, for so long she had held off the effects of the disease. Always put a smile on her face, always giving a quick smile and an ¡®I have it dear¡¯ to whoever was about to stand to help. She had been so strong for all of them, she had been so strong for Meno. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, boy¡± Mr. Dimitri¡¯s frail voice carried in the silence, ¡°What do you have to be sorry for, Mr. Dimitri¡± Meno said turning with the hint of a smile on his face, ¡°We both lost her, just you and me now. I¡¯m just glad she didn''t suffer too long in the end¡± Meno knew that these words weren¡¯t true, and he saw in Mr. Dimitri¡¯s eyes that he had known it too. She had been in pain for years. Just as he was now, and had been for some time. He had been trying to stand straight, as he always did when they buried one of their comrades. In respect, like a military man would. It was difficult for him now. ¡°This will be your last grave, my boy¡± The words made Meno¡¯s heart sink. He knew that Mr. Dimitri would force him to make an escape from this place now, but he couldn''t think of abandoning the old man. ¡°Think I¡¯m going to just run off? Or are you planning on living forever?¡± Mr. Dimitri looked at him sternly as he said this. ¡°Come on, I¡¯ll make you some supper,¡± Meno said with a smile, wanting to change the subject as quickly as possible. He glanced one more time at Helen¡¯s grave, he felt her loss already, he didn''t have a chance to say goodbye last night. ¡°How do you plan to survive without me, old man, you can¡¯t even make soup¡± It took time to walk Mr. Dimitri back into the misty town where the houses had started to fall apart with the moisture that clung to this town. There were days when you couldn''t even see the house across the street from you it was that thick, even though they were only a few meters away from each other. There was no point in maintaining all of the houses, and therefore Meno hadn¡¯t. The three of them had been all that was left for the last five months. So they had moved into one house, Hellen¡¯s. It wasn''t because it was the biggest house, it was because it felt like home, even for the old soldier at Meno¡¯s side. ¡°You will need to continue your training even without Hellen¡± said the old man, moving his stick in place one of his legs that he had lost some more movement in recently. ¡°I will¡± said Meno trying not to show how emotional he felt. He was trying hard not to think of missing her, but rather to be grateful for the time that he had had with her. Something that she had taught him when they had lost Dot. Meno looked back fondly at his ¡®school¡¯ that they passed now. He had removed the doors from it years ago, to send invitations to passers-by to join him and tell him about their lives and teach him what they could. He loved learning about the outside world from all of them, loved hearing about the different peoples and about the history of the Universe and how it worked, it seemed so big outside of his little town of Gol. He had not always been the best student to some of the townspeople, sometimes sneaking out and hiding in the forest to think on the lessons he did appreciate: ¡®He¡¯s obstinate, and doesn''t pay attention¡¯ would say, Dot, who wanted to teach him how to sow and gossip, ¡®Always making up excuses or creating ruckus to make an escape¡¯ was a major complaint of Frederick who tried to teach him the value of following the orders of authority. ¡®He has no potential whatsoever, can¡¯t even sit through a lecture on how to behave, and he called me a bitch!¡¯ said Eric, the zoologist. ¡®So, stands up for himself, resourceful and focused?¡¯ Meno smiled remembering this, she had always supported him, even when he was being obstinate, dismissive or a know-it-all. The town had lived in stasis for all of Meno¡¯s life, the guards in military uniform patrolled the fence in their masks with their guns, the population diminishing at its steady pace with the losses of all of his friends. The people that had brought him up in a doomed world, but still chose to take the time to teach him all they knew, and never let him rest in complacency. The losses always hit Meno hard, but tried to hide how much they hit him, though, it was noticed. Mr Dimitri would regale stories to comfort Meno during those losses, stories of the legendary Kryptea and their Silent Army, the triumph of the Autarch and the War King over the old god-king, of the great empire of Sha-En and the last living child who would set war into motion, the Empire on the other side of the universe that favoured poetry and peace above all things. Mr. Dimitri always gave particular attention to his favourite subject of the old Hulfean war god Locne and his triumphs from millennia before. Stories of how his armies swept through systems and triumphed over great evils and injustices. The old man would enjoy telling him the stories, even though it meant a harsh word from some of the other townspeople, especially Hellen who never wanted Meno to learn anything about the conflicts of the universe and wanted him to focus more on how to take care of himself, and be a good citizen, ¡®War is for tyrants and bastards¡¯ Hellen would always say, ¡®You be a good lad and you take care of your own, don''t worry about people who fight, it¡¯s all they will ever do¡¯. She was always telling Meno to put his head down and make sure that he didn''t cause a fuss. Then would inevitably cover for him once he did cause a fuss. He remembered that she would also tell him tales of giants, vampires, ghosts and of course, the boogeyman that would ensnare kings and turn empires. He found himself already missing her telling him stories, it had been years since she had, but he longed for it now, just to hear her voice. Their dinner was quiet, calm and just what they both needed. They did not ignore one another but were rather, giving each other the space that they both needed to reflect on Hellen¡¯s passing. After dinner, Meno helped the old man into his room and wiped down the surfaces as Hellen would have. Not that it was ever necessary as Mr. Dimitri had always been a clean and neat person. His belongings were few and the room contained only a small bed and a wooden chair where his clothing was folded. The old man now refolded them as Meno took the old cloth across the window sill. He didn''t say anything. Meno wished him a good night and made his way to his own room, not wanting to leave the old man, but knowing that fussing over him would do nothing for either. He was scared now. Meno was no fool, and he had always known that Gol was a doomed place, that it would one day come to an end with only him left in the town. He just hadn''t expected it to come as fast as it had. He prepared himself for the conversation that he knew was coming the next morning. Mr. Dimitri would tell him that it was time to leave. He knew in his heart, that he would have to. The next morning Meno woke with the sunrise, he had always been an early riser, this morning felt strained to him though. He had tossed and turned in his bed that night, moving through thoughts of uncomfortable conversations ahead, and unable to escape them into sleep. He lay in bed for longer than he usually did, his arm over his forehead. She would want him to move forward. She didn''t want him to run away though. He made his way downstairs and grabbed the small basket that she had woven from reeds that he used to gather the mushrooms and herbs. Mr. Dimitri was not up yet which was unusual, but with all that had happened, he decided to let him sleep. The day was clearer than it had been for some¡­ ¡°What is that?¡± he asked the old man who was not still sleeping, but standing outside in the street leaning against his walking stick. His eyes too fixated on the structure atop the highest hill lining the valley. It was an enormous black ship, a smooth elongated oval-shaped structure that hung vertically from the heavens, not quite touching the ground below it. It was the most foreign thing that Meno had ever seen. It must have stretched up nearly a thousand meters into the sky from that peak. ¡°Is that a Pillar?¡± Meno said not looking at the old man but marvelling at the ship. Mr. Dimtri did not answer, but Meno knew, from every explanation and description that he had ever heard about these ships that this was a House Pillar. A warship, a symbol of power and occupation. These were the chosen weapons of the Houses, their instruments of control. One of these ships could control entire planetary regions, a number of them strategically placed around a planet could disrupt enough of the planet with its subtle weapons and energy manipulations that it could render that planet uninhabitable. It hung there, unyielding to the winds or physics itself looming over their small town made of wood, held in the foggy valley. ¡°It¡¯s time we start making a plan for your escape, Meno¡± Chapter 2: The Loyal Chapter 2: The Loyal Year: 7097/03 Everything had changed for Meno. Mr. Dimitri had sat him down at the kitchen table as they discussed the emergence of the Pillar and what it meant. The old man had forced him to pack provisions into the basket and have it ready to go at any moment. He had told him to use the forest on the Eastern side of the town as the guards seldom ventured in there, ¡®The trees are too thick, it messes with their comms equipment¡¯ Meno had never seen him like this before. Meno himself just sat at the table watching the man, trying to take it all in, but his head was swimming with thousands of thoughts at once. He couldn''t concentrate, he couldn''t understand. ¡°A Pillar?¡± he asked, his thoughts vocalising themselves, ¡°For¡­us? That¡¯s a fucking warship isn''t it?¡± ¡°Language¡± he admonished reflexively. The old man looked at him for a moment and then sat at the table. The adrenaline was fueling his body and he would hurt later for moving the way that he was now. He took a moment and looked at Meno deeply, he calmed himself and then spoke. ¡°You know why all of us were sent here, yes?¡± ¡°Yes, but¡­¡± ¡°This has been an operation run by a House, and even though I have been here for some twenty years now, I still cannot imagine that something like this is legal¡± Meno just looked at the man, this was the first time that he was ever speaking to Meno about anything¡­real. ¡°With Hellen passing they clearly know that the end of the experiment has come. They are going to pack it all up. Before you ask, I don''t know what it was for, I don¡¯t know why. That is a Dorlec ship though, did you see the Diamond shape with the lines through it on the Pillar?¡± ¡°No. what?¡± Meno¡¯s head was now looping in on itself. What in the hells was happening here? ¡°No matter. They are a nasty bunch, very pompous as a House, they believe that they are better than most¡± he said standing. He took up the kettle and placed it on the window sill. ¡°She hated when you did that¡± Meno said, his mind clinging onto anything familiar. ¡°She hated it because it tells the guards that I want to speak with them¡± he peered through the window, watching the Pillar. ¡°It doesn''t seem like there is much going on there, but we still need to¡­¡± he pushed the basket at Meno, ¡°I know this is a lot, kid, but you need to pay attention now, pack your provisions¡± Two days passed without any movement from the Pillar, nor was there any change in the guard''s pattern on how they patrolled the perimeter of the town. They had spotted two ships landing near the Pillar, thought Mr. Dimitri identified these as small freighters usually for resources, and they were not of any major concerns. Life all happened as usual in the little town named after the moon of Gol. Meno hadn''t slept either night though, he suspected that Mr. Dimitri had not either. Meno had noticed that he left the house at night and crept into the woods. He had asked Meno not to follow him, not to wait in the street, nor to look out the window when he went. ¡®They will have their eyes on any movement¡¯ he would say. Meno had asked about him going out to which the old man merely said; a Pillar has just landed on the moon that I live on, I¡¯m going to have some questions. He had come back each night disappointed though, somewhat despondent until he noticed that Meno was looking at him, ¡®I¡¯m sure she is just trying to find the best time to meet with us¡¯ he would say with a smile. Their days blended, and they found themselves spending more time in Hellen¡¯s little house than they ever had before. Meno still went out to get their mushrooms and herbs in the morning. Mr. Dimtri told him to gather more than usual to pack the basket. The house was becoming a prison though, they didn''t want to move around the town as they did before. The old man didn''t want the Pillar to see how weak he was, hoping that they would wait until he was at his weakest before coming down, he would stand outside and act as though he was much stronger than he really was. Meno knew that he was not, and suspected that was not the reason they were not coming into the town. It didn''t stop Mr. Dimitri from trying to prepare Meno at every chance he got. Reminding him which way to go, and how long to wait before he made his way to the guard''s barracks. The code word that he should tell Captain Lawrence when he eventually found her. He had become desperate. Meno started his forms on the second day, ¡®Good¡¯ the old man said as he saw Meno fall back into his training. It took his mind off of things for a moment and also gave Meno the ability to work off his anxiety. Meno knew that this wouldnt help in the grander schemes of things, but it got them through those moments of worry and avoided them turning into panic. Meno had never felt so powerless, and for Mr. Dimitri it seemed worse. ¡°Are you going out again tonight?¡± Meno asked on the third day taking the bowls after they had finished their dinner. It was sparse, and the old man took less food, Meno knew it was so that he could have his basket filled more for when he needed to leave. It irritated Meno that the old man was not thinking about himself, but he had given Meno a look to tell him that it was not up for discussion. ¡°I won¡¯t be long. Don''t look out of the windows¡± he said as he walked out of the door. It took him more time than he would have liked to admit to get in and out of the forest on the outskirts of the town, but he tracked along, trying not to look weak in front of the prying eyes of the Pillar which was even visible at night, stretching across the sky blocking any light from the sky that hung behind. It had been more than twenty years since he had seen one. When they had arrived on Gol, they were brought by a small transport ship, nothing fancy, nothing as ominous as that. He had served on one, in the 37th Battalion which was under the command of Guy Reyes under the Hulfean House at the end of the war. This one was in much better condition than the Pillar he had served on during that time. Their Pillar was called ¡®Gram¡¯, he couldn''t tell what the name of this one was. It seemed to be the same model as the Pillars used during the war, though he knew that it was more about what was held in the Pillar than what it looked like on the inside. Each had the capacity to house two thousand soldiers, hundreds of fighter ships and an equal number of tanks among carriers. Each Pillar was designed to take over countries on planets, and they were very effective at it. They would distort gravity fields, instil deep vibrations into a planet''s crust and cause enormous earthquakes, cut communications. That would all be before they sent in the army, and started shooting. He managed his way through the damp forest floor and eventually came to the meeting spot. He took his usual position upon the stone and waited. His mind ran with thoughts of how he could get the boy out. They had very little to work with, but the boy was strong, clever, and determined. He would make anyone proud. He wondered if Hellen was right. If he made the boy run, would the Pillar deem him as a fugitive? Was it better to have him turn himself over to them? They could prove that he wasn''t sick, his blood had been given multiple times. He had personally handed the blood over to Lawrence who had said that she tested them. There was a crack in the woods and Lor opened his eyes to see her standing there. Clad in the exo-suit armour that he was so familiar with. It was a mix of reinforced metal plating on the shoulders and chest plate all held together with a fibre weave of deep blue. Its sharp angular patterns made Lor feel reminiscent for a moment. It was the helmet that was the striking feature of the suit. A seamless glossy black visor that completely obscured the wearer''s face, only broken by the tech integrations on the side of the helmet where he knew the sensors were housed and which fed into the computer in the back of the helmet. It¡¯s the hardest point. Around the shoulders and chest, an array of utility pouches and compartments were neatly integrated. Some were better hidden than others, he remembered. The gold lining that held to the most visible metal plating had faded on her suit. It no longer held the Diamond cage seal of the Dorlec. He wondered if she had intentionally worn it out. ¡°Hello, Angie,¡± he said to the figure, ¡°Hello, Captain,¡± she said through the mechanical voice changer on the helmet, ¡°Guess you''re wondering about our guests¡± ¡°How long do we have?¡± ¡°I don''t know,¡± she said, ¡°We are just receiving orders at the moment, and before you ask, it is to carry on as usual. They have not asked us any questions. The Pillar has access to our systems, they don¡¯t actually need us¡±. Lor Dimitri nodded, expecting that this would be the case. He tapped his ear twice and she nodded, ¡°Turned it off¡± she said confirming that her comm was off. He wanted to make sure that they were not being overheard. The forest would stop the Pillar from hearing them clearly, but he would still be cautious. ¡°Heard anything from my old friend?¡± ¡°I sent your note, but I never received a response,¡± she said heavily. The helmet distorted her voice, telling him that she had sighed again. He nodded, with a heavy swallow. He really was hoping that he would have heard something by now, or seen something. ¡°The Pillar has access to your systems, so they should be able to see the results from Meno¡¯s blood work correct?¡± She nodded, ¡°Then they should know that he is fine¡± he said, though he was not hopeful about this. He shook his head, he couldn''t believe that he had thought earlier that the kid should hand himself over. He had seen and been part of an illegal prison camp. They were never going to let him out of here. He had been too hopeful. ¡°Who¡¯s in charge?¡± ¡°Sheppard. Young up and comer, just been elevated to Commander by Lord Valentine himself. He started with an equipment inspection¡± she said, knowing that Lor would know the type. Young, ambitious, holding the rules, eager to prove himself. Their situation couldn''t be worse. With older commanders, there was always the chance for rules to be bent. Although this was the Dorlec, and if Angie had told him previously about Valentine, he was a man of order. Lor didn''t know him, he had known of the previous commander of the Dorlec, Lord Kasim Hoter, who from what Lor knew was of a similar mould. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, Captain. There really isn''t much that I can do here¡± she said, hanging her head, ¡°We don¡¯t have access to the Pillar and we haven¡¯t had a ship on this rock for nearly twenty years now, I can¡¯t see¡­¡± Lor held his hand up. ¡°It¡¯s alright, Angie,¡± he said heavily, ¡°If you could, would it be possible to send one more message to our old friend?¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do what I can,¡± she said in her distorted voice. He nodded and made his way back through the forest. She watched him as he went down, not really able to believe how weak he had become. She had known him as the strapping Captain Lor Dimitri. The man who would never give up, the soldier who gained praise from Guy Reyes himself after his efforts during the war. She stood there for a few moments after she had lost sight of him, her helmet not picking up heat signatures since she had turned it off. She then turned and made her way back to her glider bike. She would finish her patrol and get back to the barracks. No doubt Collins would moan that her comms were off again. She periodically did it to ensure that it didn''t create a pattern of her meeting with Lor. Though, tonight was probably more of a risk. If the Pillar had been looking at them they would have noticed that her comms were down. She exhaled, she would just tell them what she always told Collins; the suits were twenty-five years old with no engineer on site. Once she parked her glider bike after her patrol of the town, she made her way towards the pre-fab barracks, which like all pre-fab buildings, have a permanence. The lights came into focus, but she noticed that there were figures standing outside, as well as a transporter ship that was parked in the clearing. She saw that there were four soldiers in Dorlec uniform accompanying an officer, who while still wearing the Dorlec exo-suit, also had some gold trim on his helmet. A Luitenet. ¡°Ah, Captain Lawrence¡± came the distorted voice of the Luitenet through his suit''s mask. He had been speaking with one of her men, Collins. She didn''t need to see Collins¡¯ face to know that this was exactly the type of situation that would turn him into a puddle. ¡°Luitenet¡± she said, ¡°What do we owe the pleasure?¡± she said walking up to them. ¡°Commander Sheppard would like a word,¡± he said bowing his head slightly, his voice was, cheery, thought Angie, even through the mask, ¡°We tried to contact you through the comms but it seems that you may be having some issues with yours?¡± he said in faux concern for her equipment, ¡°In fact it seems a miracle that your equipment still works at all, seeing the state of this,¡± he said gesturing the blocky barracks. It had been sitting on planet for twenty years now, and the elements had taken their toll. It had even sunk into the earth a bit. ¡°Very well¡± she said ignoring the words of the barracks, ¡°Let me change into my uniform and I will join you¡± she said darting her eyes, but not changing the direction of her head to Collins. She didn''t want to seem concerned about this at all. The younger man, Collins, had only been on moon for three years now. A delinquent soldier who had been sent here for no other reason than to be out of the way. He was a sweet kid, and he was visibly panicking right now, his head moving from right to left between the armed Dorlec soldiers and herself. ¡°No need, it will just be a report¡± said the Luitenet. He held his arm out towards the transport ship. She nodded and passed Collins, placing her hand on his shoulder. Stolen story; please report. ¡°That fence strut on the Western side has fallen over again, can you go fix that before morning?¡± he nodded quickly, ¡°Ah, before that¡± interjected the Luitenet, ¡°We will be inspecting the barracks. Two birds and all of that. You may perform your duties once the inspection is complete. You understand right, Captain?¡± it was now Angie¡¯s turn to nod. She squeezed the shoulder of Collins tight, needing to get through the armour plating on the exo-suit. ¡°Shall we?¡± Two of the guards stayed at the barracks and two joined with Angie and the Luitenet, once on the transport ship which only added to Angie¡¯s anxiety. She did not feel comfortable here at all, she didn''t like leaving her men, she didn''t like that they were being separated, and now she was being thrown onto a Transport deployment ship. She had been on many of these, they were common to Pillars and used for the strategic deployment of ground troops on planet. Memories of the war swelled in her as she stepped aboard the Rhombus-shaped, vee¡¯d hulled ship with open sides placed for gunners on all corners. These ships were usually the last familiar thing that someone knew before being dropped off on a battlefront. She felt the same now. They didn''t speak while en route, the wind coming in would have made it difficult and her comms equipment ¡®was-not-working¡¯. She preferred it that way, it allowed her to think of everything that was about to come. She hoped her men would be okay. There were three of them, Collin¡¯s, the closest to her, Aubrey who had been there for only six months now and Callum, who was serving his fourteenth year on the moon. She didn''t feel comfortable leaving them with those Dorlec soldiers. They flew over the forests, the small dim lights from the town being the only break through the fog. Angie turned and looked up to the Pillar, she was taken back to the enormity of them, the monolithic structure, when on a planet always seemed impervious, they had a stillness to them in their towering over the lands below them, as though they were not affected by the landscape around them at all. The rounded curves of the ship gave nothing away to the weapons that hid under almost every square inch of the thing. They started to descend and the light below the Pillar came into site, only a few people who were moving crates were seen, all moving from the freighter ships and the gravity lifts under the Pillar, hanging suspended above them. They came in, docked and made their way into the light where the platform was lifted into the heart of the ship. Angie hadn¡¯t seen this much light for a long time. The platform, a basic metal shelf that they were now standing on, stopped ascending and moved sideways across the room. It didn''t jolt them at all, gravity lifts assisted you in holding your position. She had forgotten about that and had tried to counter it, the Luitenet took her arm as though she was falling, she held her hand up, ¡°You¡¯ve been in a Pillar before, correct?¡± he said sounding surprised to her over-correction. She stood up straight and nodded, ¡°It¡¯s been a long time, though,¡± she said not wanting to offer any other explanation. ¡°The Hulfean fleet?¡± he asked as though just passing conversation, ¡°The 78th Reon, it was very much like this ship,¡± she said, looking around at the massive interior. On the lower floors of the Pillar, it was cavernous. Lift platforms moved up and down, side to side, darting between bays that held tanks, soldiers, and scientific equipment. She had never spent much time in the cargo hold, besides when getting ready for deployments by foot. ¡°Ah, yes, under Commander Guy Reyes, if I¡¯m not mistaken¡± ¡°Should I be worried that you have studied up on me?¡± she didn''t get an answer, but again, he held his arm out and they passed into a room with five doors, Angie moved ahead through one of the doors and the Luitenet through his own. It was a decontamination room. Angie had been using one of these daily for the last twenty years, though this one was far larger. She removed her exo-suit and placed it next to her as she stood in the room, wearing only her base layers. She waited for the familiar vibration to occur and felt her entire body buzz as it started, and then the jets of smoke sprayed forward into the room. She could feel the marks on her face from wearing her helmet for too long, the itch of sweat. Once the smoke stopped, the wall to her left was imprinted with a holographic display of her. Gods she looked old, she thought, tired. They had taken a scan while she was being decontaminated, her hand moving to the messy bun that her hair was being kept in, wondering if that¡¯s really what it looked like looking at the revolving hologram. Writing flashed up and cleared her of any contamination. She looked at the image of herself again. She had lost that spark that she once had, that eagerness of eye, she wondered if she had lost her ability to intimidate anyone. Her stats showed that she was still five foot nine, but her frame had slimmed. She had always been strong, but she wondered how much of that strength nowadays was from her tech rather than her natural muscle. The door on the opposite side from where she entered opened and she saw the Luitenet waiting for her, his hands held behind his back with impeccable posture, he must have been in his early thirties. He didn''t look like he was someone important enough to have age extending privildges. He had neatly parted black hair, a clean shaven face and was by all accounts, a good looking man, though he held the usual smug face of a Dorlec soldier. It was their defining feature, really. ¡°All clear I see¡± he said with a smile that did reach his eyes, ¡°No uniform?¡± Angie said looking around, ¡°No need, in and out, as I said, it¡¯s just a report¡± he said again with that wonderful ability to lie with his eyes. ¡°I must apologise for my previous questions, it is just that I am fascinated by the war, always have been,¡± he said with a smile, also confirming her thoughts on his age. ¡°I was too young you see, but I saw the world change regardless, I¡¯ve watched all of the programs on it, and heard some of the war stories, but I have never spoken to someone who was in the Hulfean fleet. I''ve studied it of course. Difficult not to study the Hulfean while looking at the war, with people like Guy Reyes and of course, King Locne¡± he said as they walked, ¡°Did you ever meet him?¡± ¡°No,¡± she said, slightly irritated that he was speaking this much. ¡°What was it like?¡± he said as they reached an elevator, he resumed his pose with his hands held behind his back, ¡°The war, I mean?¡± ¡°It was like trying to negotiate with a grenade that''s already gone off,¡± she said dismissively. The Luitenet seemed to get the message that she had been so desperately trying to send to him, and thankfully, shut up. They rode the elevator in silence, though the Luitenet did not seem uncomfortable in the silence. Once the doors opened they came to a small antechamber adorned with a painting hanging on its wall and two large chairs on the other with a small table in the middle of them. The painting showed a great battle, Angie could see some long-lost city being destroyed by Pillars with Dorlec sigils on them, and soldiers swarming the city. She didn''t remember much about the Dorlec during the war, she had been on the other side of the galaxy. This seemed a bit, dramatic though. ¡°An original,¡± the Luitenet said with a smile and a slight shake of his head while admiring the painting. Thankfully, the doors opened before Angie could say something to actually offend the man now, and once again, his arm raised to allow Angie into the room. She had been in a Pillar Command room once before, but at that point, it was filled with the smells of blood and explosives. They had witnessed a call of relief from the Matise House after being ordered to drop onto another gods damned planet, their Pillar already in tatters, their men weak or broken, or dead. This one though, was, plush. It wasn''t anything like Angie had ever seen before, the room was carpeted with thick material, the walls were and had linings of wood, from what seemed like a single tree that wrapped up the right-hand side of the room, no leaves, it seemed that the wood had been finely polished. There were sofas of fine leather, and in the place where Angie had remembered there being a rectangular table, there was now a round table with high wing-backed chairs. She looked to her sides and saw heavy doors on either side, each with a Dorlec guard in full exo-suit uniform. The room was long, and she saw the silhouette of who she supposed was the commander sitting at a desk that must have been four meters wide, behind him, the large viewport of the Command room showed the skyline and the rising sun far in the distance. A small illuminated square on the window which looked to be a zoomed-in image of the town with information scrolling through on the side. ¡°Commander,¡± said the Luitenet, ¡°Captain Angela Lawrence for you¡± Angie threw her hand up in a salute. She saw the briefest movement and imaged that he had only bothered to raise his eyes to this from what he was working on, ¡°Step forward, Captain,¡± he said in a formal tone, ¡°Thank you, Smik¡± he said to the Luitenet, who instead of leaving, moved to one of the sofas on the side of the room. Angie stepped towards the desk, it took her some time, the room really was very big. The carpet was like walking on a cushion. She saluted once more when she got to the desk, not remembering if that was the correct protocol or not. She was not relieved, and so, stood there saluting. ¡°Commander Sheppard, sir¡± she eventually said, her eyes never lowering to his face. ¡°Your comm device seems to be non-operational, Captain¡± ¡°Yes, sir, our tech is old¡± ¡°Are you not maintaining it?¡± ¡°We are sir, though we do not have an engineer on moon¡± she said, feeling irritated that she was not allowed to drop her salute yet. ¡°Luitenet, get an inspection of the Captain''s equipment done, send the report here,¡± he said not bothering to raise his voice any higher, ¡°Sir¡± came the voice of Luitenet Smik from behind her, and she heard him tapping on a datapad. ¡°You were picked up on the scanners meeting with, one, Lor Dimitri this evening. What did he want to meet about?¡± he said lazily. Angie dropped her salute and held her arms behind her back, she also dropped her eyes to look at the Commander. Her first thought was that he recruited in his own image, it seemed Luitenet Smik had modelled himself off of the Commander. He had neatly parted hair, not a single hair out of place in it¡¯s work, he had a sharp nose and chin, piercing eyes and held himself well. He was clean-shaven and wore his uniform with textbook precision. He did not look impressed that Angie had decided to relieve herself, but did not press the matter. ¡°He wanted to know about the Pillars arrival and what it meant, sir¡± ¡°And what did you tell him?¡± ¡°That I didn''t know, sir. We have not received any information about the next steps¡± ¡°Are you always that candid with prisoners, Captain?¡± the words took her by surprise. It was foolish that she would think that that would have been okay. She didn''t want to say anything, and it seemed that Sheppard did not need her to. ¡°Lor Dimitri, you served with him during the war in the Hulfean fleet¡± ¡°Yes, sir¡± they had picked up the message she had sent, she thought. ¡°I am sure you can understand my view of a meeting that seems so, clandestine in nature to cause concern¡± ¡°Concern, sir?¡± he watched her carefully for a moment and then said, ¡°The boy, Meno, no other name, has picked up nine per cent muscle mass in the last few months according to your scanners. Lor Dimitri is training him. I was not sure of what to make of that, and then one of the guards, Captain of the guard¡± he inflected on her rank, ¡°Meets with Lor Dimitri, outside of her patrol schedule without her comm device active¡± again he let this hang in the air. She would not be baited. ¡°I am quite sure that you are telling the truth in his interest in the Pillar, but why like that? Was there nothing else that he wanted to ask you?¡± ¡°He wanted to thank me for the herbs, sir¡± ¡°Yes¡± he said peering over at his datapad, ¡°You have planted a number of rationed seeds in the forest for them over the years?¡± ¡°Yes, sir¡± ¡°And he chose now to thank you for that?¡± ¡°He doesn''t know how much longer he has, sir¡± she knew it was weak. Why did she have to say anything in the first place? She was on the back foot here, rattled by what he wasn''t saying. They knew, they must have. ¡°What else did he want?¡± he said quickly, and sharply, his tone changing for the first time. She would need to give him something. If he knew anything about Lor, he would know that Lor was always up to something. His military record would say as much. ¡°Some time ago, he asked me to send a message to his homeworld, a farewell¡± Too little too late, she thought after adjusting her strategy. What a weird order to deliver her report. ¡°Did you?¡± ¡°No, sir. These people do not exist¡± ¡°No, they do not¡± his tone was low and dangerous. ¡°Have you corresponded with the Hulfean House since the war?¡± ¡°No, sir, I was posted here after the war, we only received Entangled communications two years ago¡± ¡°It¡¯s not the only way to communicate,¡± he said, leaning back in his chair. ¡°It¡¯s no matter even if you did, they are bound by the Houses and their laws, you would have been foolish to have even tried,¡± he said as though speaking to a toddler, ¡°No House would expose themselves to the rest for a mere guard¡± ¡°If I may sir, am I being interrogated?¡± ¡°You are being interrogated for assisting a Hulfean House sympathizer, Captain. We have already established that you are incapable of maintaining military equipment, and have no regard for military rations being used in a decent manner¡± ¡°I was in the war with him, sir. Are the Hulfeans not our allies?¡± ¡°And you have lost your sense of hierarchy, Captain¡± She felt her breath become uneasy, as his tone remained implacable. ¡°Tell me about the boy¡± he said pulling up the datapad in front of him again. ¡°Meno, he is seventeen, seems to have a natural immunity to the disease. He was dropped at the fence fifteen years ago, it seems that his parents did not want him, and chose the worst place in the universe to leave him¡± ¡°Who were his parents?¡± ¡°Unkown, sir. We did not have the scanners that we have today back then. Nobody saw them come in¡± ¡°You collected his bloods?¡± ¡°We received a blood sample from one of the prisoners, Hellen Milton some years ago, the results came back clean. Somehow he doesn''t have a trace of it in his blood, nor does he have any mutations to suggest that his body learned how to fight it off, it seems that the virus just, misses him, sir¡± ¡°Yes, Milton, she took primary care of him, did she not?¡± ¡°It seemed so, sir. He grew up in her house¡± She could tell where he was going with this. Hellen, although sweet in her disposition and kindliness to the rest of the townspeople, had murdered her last employer. She had been a housekeeper for a Commander of the Matise house, Angie didn''t know much more detail than that. Hellen had never had a trial. ¡°How long does Lor Dimitri have?¡± he said putting the data pad down once more. His tone had become somewhat exasperated, as though this was a waste of his time. ¡°I couldn''t tell you, sir¡± ¡°Surely, Captain¡± he raised lazy eyes at her, ¡°You have watched them for twenty years, do not tell me that you have not gained some measure of this disease¡± ¡°A few months, maximum, maybe weeks, he has been in the final stages for a while now, sir¡± ¡°Not exactly a quick end is it?¡± it was the first time that he seemed to express his own thoughts, and he had said something like that. Angie, took in a breath to calm herself. ¡°The disease has a somewhat slower rate with them than previously seen sir. Fatality usually occurs within six months, some on gol have lasted twenty years, though they have felt the effects of it¡± ¡°Well, it sounds like he has suffered for long enough then. Luitenet, make the preparations, I do not want to spend more time here than needed. Captain,¡± he said straightening up and facing her dead on for what seemed the first time, ¡°You are being stripped of your rank¡± She spluttered but he continued, ¡°You will be moved to a Dorlec for treason against the House¡¯s. You have failed the Autarch and yourself as a soldier¡± ¡°Charges!?¡± she roared, all pretence now gone, ¡°The forementioned offenses, as well as fraud in manipulating the blood work that you sent for testing¡± he said as calmly as before, he looked at the datapad, ¡°And it seems for intentional sabotage of House equipment¡±. She hadnt noticed the guards behind her that grabbed her by the arms. ¡°I didn''t¡­¡± the words escaped her mouth, but the Commander did not say anything, he had turned back to the datapad as she was being dragged out. She passed Luitenet Smik who smiled at her and said, ¡°It was lovely to speak with you, Captain¡± Chapter 3: Wanderer Meno had waited for Mr. Dimitri to return, he did as he was told and did not look out of the window, he did not stand outside to ensure that the old man was okay, he didn''t do anything at all. He sat at the kitchen table and waited. It was excruciating. He thought of the nights before when Mr. Dimitri had gone out to go and see the guard and had come back despondent, disappointed. Meno would try and cheer him up. Hellen had always been good at cheering them up. Maybe he would try Dot¡¯s approach, the old hag had always seemed to be able to pull a laugh from the worst situations. She would have them laughing at their little funerals. Usually by saying something completely inappropriate. Perhaps Mr. Dimitri would not appreciate that coming from him. Or perhaps, tonight, it would be different, perhaps the guard, Lawrence would have been there, and there would have been a plan. Meno¡¯s stomach lurched. If that was the case then he would need to leave Mr. Dimitri. He shifted in his chair and rubbed his eyes. He had always dreamed of seeing the galaxy, and experiencing all of the wonders that the townspeople had told him about, he had imagined himself flying through the stars on grand ships, stepping onto new worlds, studying the different cultures. It had always been comfortable to imagine and dream these things. Now that this was a possibility, he felt terrified. He had used those dreams as a comfort, something to take his mind off everything that was happening, everything that was so stagnant. He had never actually prepared himself for it. He had never truly believed that it could happen, not to him, not from this cursed place. The people of Gol lived and died on Gol. The door opened and Mr. Dimtri walked in, his head hanging, ¡°She wasn''t there?¡± Meno asked interpreting his mood. The old man sighed, placed his walking stick next to the door scuffled over to the table and took a seat. ¡°She was,¡± he said slumping. He looked up at Meno, ¡°It doesn''t sound like the message got through. It is just us¡± Meno had never seen the man so defeated. Meno had not anticipated this and felt foolish for only allowing himself to ponder on two eventualities. What would Swan have said if he had known? Of course, there was a possibility that even with her help, and her presence, there was nothing that could be done. They were up against an army, after all. Of course, one lonely guard was not going to change their fate. ¡°Then it¡¯s just us¡± Meno said trying to lift his spirits. ¡°The Pillar hasn''t done anything to raise suspicions, all we have seen is some supply ships come in. Maybe it¡¯s just getting repaired, for re¡­¡± he stopped at the look of the old man. Once again feeling foolish. It was a weak attempt. ¡°You can steal one of those supply ships, but you will need to¡­¡± ¡°I dont know how to fly a ship, old man¡± Meno scoffed. ¡°Sneak aboard and hide, or steal the ship and I will tell you how to fly it,¡± he said with some desperation now. ¡°We need to do something¡± he said shaking his head, facing the table. ¡°There is nothing else on this moon, no towns, no villages, it¡¯s just us, and that Pillar. The guards didn''t even have a way off this planet. I was hoping to sneak you aboard one of their resupply ships at some point, but I thought we had more time. We need to use one of those freighters, and we need to do it soon¡± ¡°I don''t need to go, I can stay here with¡­¡± Meno stopped as something outside of the window caught his attention. It was a man¡¯s face. It was a man who wasn''t wearing a mask. It was a man, peering through their window. Mr. Dimitri turned but the man had gone, and then there was a knock on the door. Meno sat frozen. He was in complete disbelief. Did a man wander into the village, not knowing, not understanding? There was another knock. Mr. Dimitri¡¯s face hardened, and he got up from his chair, grabbed his walking stick and readied himself. ¡°Hello, I know you saw me. I got your message¡± said the almost cheerful voice. Mr. Dimtri hesitated and then opened the door. It revealed a tall man, he had a smile on his face and seemed to smile broader at the reaction he was getting from the inhabitants of the home. ¡°You¡­got my¡­¡± ¡°Yep,¡± he said quickly, ¡°Can I come in, it¡¯s a bit chilly¡± Meno sat in disbelief as the man walked into the room, smiling and looking around eagerly. It seemed that he didn''t know about the disease. Nobody, in the entire time that Meno had been alive, had come into the camp without a full exo-suit on. This was the first new face that Meno had ever seen. He had never seen clothing like that before, he was wearing a thin jacket, a clean white shirt with a round collar. He had shoes that only covered half of his foot. The dusty blonde-haired man didn''t look like anyone from the village at all. He looked strong, his skin was tanned, something that he had only ever heard of. He had tattoos that reached up the left side of his neck and down to his chest. A mess of straight lines that crisscrossed with the occasional twirl and bend, like a written language that had been written over itself a number of times. ¡°Town¡¯s a bit shit isn''t it?¡± he said looking around the room, his eyes widened as he looked at the kettle which he picked up, ¡°Tea?¡± he said swinging the kettle in the air, ¡°Tea will get us started¡± ¡°Who are you?¡± Meno felt the words tumble from his mouth. Mr. Dimtri had slumped back into his chair, just staring at the man. ¡°My name is Worrec,¡± he said, though he seemed unsure of it for a moment. ¡°Tea?¡± ¡°You¡¯ve killed yourself,¡± Meno said, still in a haze, ¡°You¡¯ve been exposed¡± ¡°Yeah, don¡¯t worry about that¡± he said holding the kettle up again, and then realising that nobody was paying attention to it, threw it over his shoulder with a clang. He took a seat and looked at both of them up and down. ¡°Okay¡± he started seeming to realise that he needed to provide some answers, ¡°I¡¯m here to get you out of here little man. We received a message some time ago from Captain Lawrence, a distress call really. We didn''t want to respond as that would be a bit risky. We were waiting for the right time to come and get you, but some shit happened and we need to get you out of here tonight¡± he said casually, as though replaying a day''s events. Meno seemed to blink himself back into reality. ¡°That¡­that doesn''t explain anything, why did you come in here without an exo-suit? Don¡¯t you know about the¡­Who in the hell are you? Mr. Dimitri¡± Meno said trying to get some input from the old man who was dumbstruck by the man. The man looked at Meno up and down as though scanning him, as though he was trying to understand him. ¡°Listen to him, Meno,¡± Mr. Dimitri said after seeming to pull himself together. ¡°Thank you for coming¡± he said bowing his head down. The man just smiled at him. ¡°You can get him out tonight?¡± ¡°We need to, the Dorlec are wrapping things up here, they have already killed all of the guards at the barracks, and they are going to be coming into town in the next few hours to come and get him and burn this place to the ground,¡± he said, once again too casually. ¡°Lawrence is dead?¡± ¡°Oh no, she has been arrested. They think that she is part of a conspiracy to get the boy out and that she is assisting the Hulfean forces and blah, blah, blah. They don¡¯t know how right they are, but it will also be a bit of a surprise to her, I would imagine¡± Meno shook his head trying to wrap his mind around all of this, it was all too much, all too fast. He still didn''t know exactly who this man was, he didn''t know why he was so calm about being in the fog, why he was so casual about everything that was happening right now. Meno was not prepared for what he was saying. They wanted to move him. tonight. ¡°How are you getting him out?¡± ¡°I have an exo-suit outside which I took from one of the guards that died at the barracks. It has some holes in it but it¡¯s fine, it won¡¯t need to pressurize and he¡¯s immune to the disease which is an absolute bonus¡± This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°Okay, and then he is going on one of the ships?¡± ¡°Our original plan had a pilot placed on the moon that was going to allow him to sneak on board. With everything happening we needed to alter that plan a bit, I managed to move some things around, your pilot will be flying the prison transport that Captain Lawrence will be taking shortly, so all working out pretty nicely if you ask me¡± neither of them were speaking to Meno at all now. ¡°So, Lawrence will be okay?¡± ¡°It¡¯s the luckiest day of her life, the ship that was meant to be taking her to the Dorlec home world, is now going to be commandeered, she will be safe¡± Mr. Dimitri looked happier than Meno had ever seen him, the old soldier beamed at Meno from across the table, ¡°Did you hear that Meno? You are going to be safe¡± ¡°How do you know all of this?¡± Meno said, feeling that this was all too good to be true. ¡°You changed the flight manifests? How did you know that the Captain has been arrested? How do you know that they are coming in the morning?¡± Meno fired off the most pressing questions that he had, they were not all of the questions he wished that he could ask, but he needed some answers. Worrec looked at him for a moment, leaned forward and then with an expression of utter pride said, ¡°I¡¯m pretty fucking amazing, right?¡± ¡°We can¡¯t trust this guy, Mr. Dimitri. None of what he is saying makes sense, how is he in this village without a mask, how did he even get on moon? He¡¯s been sent by them to separate us! For all we know, he killed the guards in the barracks and the Captain¡± ¡°We can trust him, Meno. You must do this¡± said Mr. Dimintri calmly. Worrec started nodding. ¡°Who is he?¡± Meno asked the old soldier. Mr. Dimitri looked as though he was deciding what to say to this when Worrec interjected. ¡°I¡¯m the one that¡¯s getting you out of this shit hole - no offence¡± he added, ¡°And we need to start moving¡± he stood up and walked to the door. ¡°I¡¯ll be back in shortly¡± he said to Mr. Dimitri, ¡°Say your goodbyes¡± and he opened the door. He pulled the exo-suit that he had mentioned into the room, flashed his eyes at Meno and then left to stand in the street. Meno just stared at his old mentor, whose eyes were welling up in the slightest way. It was the most emotion he had ever seen from the old man. ¡°I don¡¯t want to go¡± ¡°You have to,¡± he said softly. ¡°You have a chance here, you must take it¡± ¡°What about you?¡± ¡°I¡¯m going to be waiting for them when they arrive. I will show them that Lor Dimitri is a man that should not be taken lightly¡± he croaked. There was a knock on the door telling them to hurry. ¡°He¡¯s such an asshole¡± ¡°Language,¡± the old man said reflexibly with a small chuckle. ¡°Don¡¯t take anything, just go with him. Do not feel sad leaving this place, remember what Hellen always taught you, you celebrate the past. Do not regret leaving this place, and do not for a moment feel guilty for you have no reason to be. You have given us all you have, and you deserve this¡± he started to stand up, and Meno feeling his limbs once more stood and joined him, ¡°Go out there and be the man that I know you are, a good man¡± he said taking Meno by each shoulder. The lump in Meno¡¯s throat grew. He had always been tough when it came to his emotions, never wanting the others to see him cry, or be down when they lost one of their own. This was different. ¡°Listen to what he tells you to do and take care of yourself, Meno¡± he said trying his hardest not to cry. ¡°I love you, Mr. Dimitri¡± The old man pulled him into a hug, and he felt him shudder. Meno was glad that he didn''t see him cry. ¡°I love you too, my boy¡± Mr. Dimtri released him from the embrace and quickly turned away, Meno knew that the old man didn''t want to show his tears. He picked up the exo-suit and held it up for him to put on. It was remarkable, as he put on the suit, it tightened and adjusted to his body, only the armoured plates unable to shift in size, but rather moved into the correct positions on his shoulders, chest and back. The old soldier was watchful of Meno putting it on, telling him to ¡®make sure it was tight¡¯ and that ¡®you should feel pressure on the back of your head from the helmet¡¯. He was a seasoned hand at it, and standing he looked at Meno with a strange expression, it was a mix of pride and sadness. Now fully suited, he removed the helmet just as Worrec said ¡°Time to go¡±, who was standing in the doorway, Meno hadn''t even heard him enter. Meno looked at Mr Dimtri once more, as he reached out to him for the last time. Meno held him tight, knowing that he would miss him. There were no more tears from the old soldier when they released. He gave Meno a stern nod, which he returned in kind. ¡°Tell Angie I say hi,¡± he said as a last passing quip. Meno didn''t say anything, afraid that a word may open a gate that he would not be able to close. ¡°I¡¯ll take him up and then we can have that last stand¡± Worrec said with a nod to Mr. Dimitri, who smiled wistfully. ¡°Thank you, Mr. Dimitri¡± Meno whispered as he left the room, knowing that he would regret it if he didn''t. This time it was the old man holding the gate. They made their way into the street, ¡°I never know what to say in those situations, you know?¡± Worrec said fiddling with something in his jacket. Meno was glad that there was darkness around him now. He felt that if he were under bright light he would feel so exposed, so seen. He suspected Worrec knew this. He handed something to Meno, on a string but made sure that he didn''t look at Meno when he looked up at him, in fact looking away. He was rather awkward in this situation too ¡°What is this?¡± Meno said inspecting the small coin. It was a brown coin with some indistinct writing on it. It had a hole punched in the top and the chain ran through that. ¡°Access. Now, about where you are going¡± he started, ¡°The pilot has the access codes to get on planet, but she does not know which planet yet, because I¡¯m very clever. That¡¯s where you come in, don''t hand it over too soon or she may dump you before taking off. She is a bit intense but I think she¡¯s okay. Very clever¡± he said in almost a distracted way, fiddling with something in his fingers. They were reaching the forest now. ¡°Look that way,¡± he said pointing Meno away from himself, he complied and felt a pinch behind his ear, ¡°What, why would you do that?¡± Meno said grabbing the spot. ¡°That¡¯s comms tech. It has some other cool features, it¡¯s the latest model I think. While on the ship run through how to work it, I¡¯m not good with that kind of stuff. It should kick in in a few moments¡± Meno kept rubbing the spot where the tech had clearly just been inserted into his skin. He looked at Worrec who was still being far too casual about this entire thing. He was walking as though they were on a small stroll. ¡°Why me?¡± Worrec looked at him again in that strange way as though trying to understand him, scanning his face, every feature. ¡°Why not you?¡± he said clearly trying to deflect. ¡°This is clearly a very risky thing to do, why would I be worth that risk? Even if it is a favour to Mr. Dimitri¡± ¡°That¡¯s the first time that I ever met Mr. Dimitri¡± he said, ¡°Anyways, shouldn''t you just be grateful that it is happening. Don¡¯t worry about the why or how, or who the dashing, clearly talented man in front of you is¡± he said with a wink. Meno looked at him incredulously. Then his vision changed completely, he saw symbols start to float around in his vision, the trees came into view far more clearly. He could see his heart rate and temperature and other stats and figures in his periphery, nothing blocking his vision at all. He stopped and rubbed his eyes. ¡°Kick in, did it? Yeah, it takes some getting used to. Stop fussing¡± he said seeing Meno still rubbing his eyes, ¡°It¡¯s the tech, it¡¯s going to help you, I¡¯ve plotted the path that you need to take to the freighter on there.¡± ¡°It¡¯s strange,¡± Meno said blinking furiously. It felt wrong, foreign. ¡°Here we are¡± he said stopping in the forest, ¡°Now, you are going to go ahead now, and I¡¯ll head back to the house. Now, it¡¯s important that you remember this¡± ¡°You are staying?¡± Meno interjected. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯ve been exposed to the disease kid,¡± he said as though this should have been well understood by now. ¡°You said it would be fine?¡± ¡°Yeah, because I¡¯m not leaving. I don¡¯t get it why is this so complicated?¡± this man really irritated Meno, but he couldn''t understand why this man would give up his life, just to get him out. He was a nobody, a kid, on a dead moon. ¡°Why are you helping me? You are effectively dying for me. This doesn''t make any sense¡± Meno said looking at him sternly. Worrec seemed to give up. ¡°Firstly, I¡¯m a bit more complicated than that. Secondly, you dont think it¡¯s strange that a disease that kills everyone and everything it touches doesn''t affect you at all? That in a place where even the air is toxic, you are in perfect health. Yeah, it¡¯s weird man¡± he said, for the first time, Meno thought that he may actually be speaking the truth, ¡°Also it¡¯s not all going to be sunshine and rainbows, you have piqued our interest. We have plans for you kid, you¡¯re not going to like all of them. Now,¡± he said returning to what he was originally saying, ¡°This is important, when you get to the transport, hang out in the trees for a bit. The scanners won¡¯t pick you up, the tech is helping with that, when you see them bringing the Captain to the ship, make your move. You are going to need to take the soldiers out, so wait until they are in the ship, the pilot should help, but don¡¯t count on it, she¡¯s a bit prickly like I said. When you meet the pilot, tell her that you need to go to Yeley, Yeley¡± he said mouthing the word out again, ¡°Don¡¯t tell her this until you get into orbit, the whole she may kick you off the ship. She¡¯s also on the run, so tensions are pretty high. Don¡¯t let the soldier hurt her¡± he said in such fast succession that Meno was trying to keep up, Worrec had made sure to emphasise the last point though which Meno found interesting. ¡°Okay, and this?¡± he said holding the coin up, ¡°There is a man on Yeley¡­Yeley¡± he said emphasising the word again, Meno was really struggling with this guy, ¡°Named Harold, he will see your entry codes when you make planetfall and will meet you at the port, give him the coin. You can trust him¡± ¡°Coming from a man that I dont trust¡± ¡°Ouch¡± he said holding his heart and feigning hurt. ¡°Wait on Yeley until we reach out to you again. Harold will have some work for you, but your first test is getting off of this rock. Don¡¯t cock it up¡± he said pointing at Meno, ¡°That¡¯s the last ship out of here that doesn''t include a body bag¡±, straightening up and looking down at Meno, ¡°You good?¡± Meno nodded and then looked up at the taller man. He knew that he needed to ask this of him. ¡°Let him fight,¡± he asked as a final request. He knew that Mr. Dimitri would like nothing more than to go out with a fight, it would be the glorious end to a soldier''s life that he never thought he would have had a chance at. Worrec smiled. ¡°Oh, we¡¯re going to do some damage¡± he said with a smile, ¡°Now, skedaddle¡± Meno started to walk off and then looked at Worrec, ¡°Thank you, for this¡± the man just smiled at him, then turned and walked into the forest back to the small town of Gol. Meno had never had so many questions floating around his head as he did right then. He had no answers, he knew that the answers he had received had been lies, he didn''t know who this man was, but what he did know, is that for some inexplicable reason, he knew he could trust him. He felt so confused as to why. This man was going to die for him, and he didn''t know if anything that he said or was doing was in Meno¡¯s best interest. It didn''t sound like it was. All he knew, is that he owed this man his life. Chapter 4: A Good Soldier Angie flinched as the surgical knife pierced her skin for the third time. She felt the tweezers under the skin that pulled the tech out. She heard the tink of the tech hitting the metal bowl. The surgeon placed a path over and then she heard for the third time the hum of the small machine that would integrate the patch onto into her skin. So they were keeping her healthy for the transport. It wasn''t a good sign, it meant that they wanted her in good shape to torture her further. Not that she was getting any reprieve now. ¡°Do they have any weapons in the town?¡± she said. A stick figure of a woman with a sharp chin, a tight skirt and an upturned nose. A typical Dorlec, Angie thought. She was accompanied by a person, she wasn''t able to tell the gender, in a red robe with a hood that was pulled over their head. A seer, she imagined. She was determining if what Angie told her was true or not, she thought the monk must have been communicating right into the interrogator''s mind. The surgeon finished off, packed their things and left the room, waiting at the door to be let out. ¡°Are there weapons?¡± she repeated. Angie lazily looked at her, despising everything about this woman. ¡°I¡¯m being sent to Dorlec to be interrogated, correct?¡± the interrogator just looked at her down her sharp nose. ¡°Seems strange that I have an interrogator in front of me, with a seer and I still, I need to be sent to Dorlec¡± The interrogator stewed, ¡°It¡¯s almost like they dont think that you are good enough?¡± ¡°You are under investigation for treason. Do you really think now is the time for a joke?¡± ¡°Whose joking?¡± Angie said looking at the seer, ¡°Almost like it¡¯s above your pay grade. Or maybe above that¡¯s Sheppard¡¯s pay grade. He seemed so pompous and in control, but perhaps he is more of an errand boy¡± She felt a searing pain in her mind like a hot spike being stabbed into it. She could really feel it without her tech now. It was now almost ancient, her tech, but it was still better than having your mind stabbed by a seer without any protection at all. She squirmed in her chair, and then the pain was released. She couldn''t even collect herself to swear at the seer. ¡°Are there any weapons?¡± ¡°Can¡¯t your seer tell you? They seem to have a good understanding of how to use their tech¡± ¡°Answer¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know, but Lor Dimitri is a very resourceful man¡± she said panting after her brain had just been assaulted, ¡°I never gave them anything, but I¡¯ve also been gone a long time, who knows what my soldiers have done¡± The interrogator closed the datapad and stood up. ¡°Very well, sticks and stones then. We have nothing to fear. Your soldiers have been dead for hours¡± Angie felt the blow as she had said it. She had thought that this must have been the case, but she didn''t want to give it any credibility, she didn''t want to admit it to herself. They were shutting down an illegal operation, not one that was run by loyal soldiers in high circles, but by misfits, those that didn''t fit in or that just got in the way. Expendable people. The interrogator and the Seer made their way out of the room, and Angie was left alone, with only her thoughts as wounding company. She had known when she came to this place that she would die a worthless death, with a forgotten life. She had thought though that she would have been able to stand for something in the end, like she had when she was young, when she was a soldier. What did she really expect though? She had volunteered for this position over two decades ago, to watch over an old mentor, because she knew that she had nothing. The war had been the only thing that had been present in her life and her old Captain was the only thing that she cared about. Her planet had been stripped, and her people lost. She never had a childhood to go back to. She had only ever had the war. When it ended, she followed her commanding officer. Like a good soldier. Even if it was to guard him in his prison. She sat there for what must have been hours in the holding cell. Her thoughts racing with her life. She was not adding judgment, nor was she wallowing in regrets on decisions that she had made. She accepted what was happening to her, what had happened to her, and she supposed what was going to happen. This was life. She had been caught in it, not someone who was ever in control of what could have happened, but someone whose life was influenced by that of others, their wants and desires, she moved in their wake, at their behest. Now, they wanted information out of her. Information that she didn''t really have. They wanted to know how she had sent the message off. She knew that she would eventually tell them, they had ways of getting her to tell them, they had people that could warp her mind to a point where her consciousness was gone and just the memories were left, they would then drive her mind to find that memory. It was simple for them. For those in control. She had posted a word, a single word on her old company''s subnet page. A word that they would always use when there was trouble. A word that was used as a joke. ¡®Muscrat¡¯. She chuckled to herself. She didn''t even know if anyone saw that page anymore, or who Lor thought was going to see it and come and save the kid. It had been twenty years since they would have last thought about Lor Dimitri, or Angela Lawrence. A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation. The door opened and two soldiers walked into the room, exo-suits and all. Angie didn''t really pay attention as they placed a suit on her, unlocking her hands and feet only when needed. They shouldn''t have worried, she wasn''t going anywhere. She complied with everything that they said, and she drifted between them as they made their way to the gravity lifts. She didn''t look around the Pillar as they went, she just kept her head down. Just placing her feet one after the other. They lowered down onto the ground of Gol, she felt them drag her a bit as they moved forward, not that she was protesting, but that she was not conscious of what was happening around her. It jolted her into looking around and she saw a combat unit readying themselves, receiving orders. Orders that would mean the death of Lor Dimitri and his boy, Meno. She watched the soldiers as they checked their gear, about twenty of them. It was overkill. It was the way of the Houses. Twenty men to kill an old man and a kid. She turned and saw the freighter, some two hundred meters away. She thought of what she could have done differently. What she could have done that would have changed anything? Perhaps, if like they had planned, they could have gotten the boy off on a resupply ship. They had chosen not to on the last one because they didn''t know the pilot, and Hellen was still alive. The boy never would have left anyway. He was too close to them, he was always going to see this end. Lor had mentioned that Angie should take the pilot out and steal the vessel. She had thought he was joking. It was so bold, such a risk. They would have been caught in moments. An old soldier well passed her expiry date and a kid who had never left his home town. She chuckled, how did you explain him? They reached the ship and the cargo bay doors opened up. The room was sealed, it would be decontaminated once the door shut again. ¡°Take a seat, doors need to close and then I will begin¡± said the pilot over the comms. One of the soldiers guided her by her arm to take a seat, he then sat next to her. She sat looking at the other. Fools, both of them, didn''t even know what was really happening. Just complying with¡­ The soldier who was standing in the cargo bay was suddenly struck by another guard who had come out of nowhere. The new guard wasn''t wearing a black suit, it was blue. Angie just sat there as the soldier that was sitting next to her stood up, the newcomer quickly made his way over with excellent speed and delivered a flying front kick to him in the chest sending him across the room. ¡®Collins?¡¯ she thought, looking at the suit. No, he was too short. The blue uniformed guard moved again the the soldier that he had first hit who was getting back up again. He tried to punch him but the Dorlec soldier caught his arm and tried to fling him, the blue-suited guard was good though and repositioned himself. The soldier next to Angie tried to get up and move to assist his colleague. Angie made a decision, she lifted her arms and placed them around the guard''s neck, using the handcuffs as a choker. The suits were built to withstand this type of thing though. She got up and placed her knee behind his back and pushed as hard as she could. The doors of the ship were closing and she saw the other two still scuffling, the blue-suited guard doing everything in his power to stop the soldier from being able to reach his weapon. The soldier she had in a vice was trying to squirm away, she slackened her grip for just a moment so that he could move, and then kicked at the back of his leg, collapsing him, once again she placed her knee in his back and pulled. He went for his weapon on his side holster. Angie rolled them to the floor of the cargo bay, making sure that he would land on his pistol, which he did. She pulled with all of her might, only now remembering that she had just had her tech removed. If it came to a full fistfight, she would have no chance against them, they would be a minimum of three times stronger than her, and if they had new tech, it would probably be more. She needed help, she looked up and saw the blue suit guard deliver a heavy blow to the Dorlec soldier¡¯s stomach, it collapsed him, ¡°His gun!¡± she screamed at him. The guard hurried and grabbed the gun away from the Dorlec that he was fighting, delivering an elbow straight across the helmet. Then the idiot threw the gun at her. She couldn''t move her hands from around the guard''s neck as the gun soared over her. She missed it completely, and the Dorlec now gaining composure, flung her over his shoulder. The ship rumbled with the shutting of the door and the soldier pulled his weapon and aimed it down at Angie. She had lost. Then the blue suit flashed above her and delivered a frightening right blow to the soldier holding a gun at her. A brilliant blue bolt of energy shot from the pistol but missed her helmet. The guard and the soldier went tumbling, and in a panic, she reached for the pistol that was previously thrown at her. She picked it up and moved to the Dorlec that her ally was now holding against the walls of the cargo bay, she pressed the pistol against the black armoured soldier, through the energy shield and shot. He went limp immediately. She looked at the blue-suited guard and something in her head clicked. ¡°Meno?¡± he didn''t say anything but reached out to try and grab her, she pulled back and then only realised that he was trying to help her. She felt a hand on her shoulder plate and saw the Dorlec soldier, he pulled her back and flung her across the room, she hit the wall with enormous force and felt all of the wind knocked out of her. She tried to catch it and looked up to see that in the time that it had taken for the Dorlec soldier to throw her, it had given the guard enough time to get on top of him. He was delivering heavy blows to the Dorlec soldier who was trying to block but was unable to. She slumped back against the cargo bay wall, her breath coming back to her. She watched as the Dorlec went limp, his helmet cracked from the blows. The familiar vibrations of decontamination started, and the usual itch emerged, but Angie didn''t react, she just looked at him as he, like her slumped back and rested his back against the other side of the cargo bay. The jets of smoke filled the room, but she didn''t remove her helmet, she just kept looking at him. It couldn''t have been him. ¡°You two okay?¡± came a voice over the comms. Again, she didn''t react. ¡°I need you to take your helmets off to finish the decontamination¡± She couldn''t see the guard anymore through the smoke and complied. She sat there wondering what was going to happen once the smoke cleared, and she saw who was under the helmet. ¡°Okay, you''re all clear, both of you¡± came the voice over the comm. The smoke cleared and the guard was walking over to her, his helmet off, revealing the face of the late teen with rat-tailed hair and grey skin, he was walking over to her with a look of concern, ¡°Lawrence?¡± ¡°Meno,¡± she said, having never spoken to the boy before, but knowing him all his life. He held out a hand to her, she took it and he pulled her up. He smiled uncomfortably, ¡°Mr. Dimitri says hi¡± Chapter 5: Artelis, The Floating City: Sonny awoke to a bottle rolling against the white marble floor, chinking as it went creating echoes of horror in his mind as it torturously clanged. He was then brought to the shocking realisation that Jax was moving around the room cleaning up papers, glasses and data pads on his desk. He opened his eyes wider and then immediately regretted it. His head pounded as he saw the bottle of whiskey which had now, graciously stopped rolling. He looked up at the desk, his eyes not working properly, it was like he was looking through a glass of water, with the lights flaring in his eyes. It didn''t help that the entire room was white and designed to be as bright as it was. ¡°What?¡± he said, more in question as to why. The lights of the stark room blazed into his eyes, bright, white and searing. He couldn''t understand. ¡°No¡­¡± he said, sliding back onto the sofa, ¡°Go away¡± he managed to get out. ¡°You have to get up,¡± Jax said steadily, not paying too much attention to him. ¡°No, don¡¯t make me do stuff¡± he pleaded. ¡°I¡¯m not making you do anything¡± she emphasised that she was not at fault here, ¡°Oso has just arrived¡± she said, darting from one side of his office to the other, carrying bottles and data pads with her. Sonny grabbed his head, still wondering what the hell was going on, she made her way over to him and shooed him with her hands, ¡°Up¡± he slowly started to move to the side, but she grabbed him, her dainty arms not able to pull him up but enough to direct him, which he currently needed. ¡°Why are¡­you?¡± he said, by the gods he felt stale. ¡°Where are my pants?¡± ¡°Go shower, and get changed¡± she said not paying attention to him at all, as she was now fluffing the cushions on the sofa that he had been sleeping on. He had a crick in his back from it, it was after all one of those awful things built for aesthetics rather than comfort. He nodded, still feeling completely confused. The nod was a mistake, his head was swimming, and not well. He stood up trying not to turn his head too quickly, not wanting to completely dislodge his brain. As Sonny stood in the shower with hot water running down his board showers pooling at his feet. He leaned forward hands pressed against the cold tiles, staring into the mirror, judging himself. His dark thick hair was damp with product and his normally bright blue eyes now slightly dull, with heavy lids, with the weight of sleep he couldn''t quite shake. He didn''t want to leave, but he also hadn''t caught what Jax was saying, or why she was waking him up so early. He spent a long time staring into the mirror as though looking at his reflection would yield some answers. He had bags under his blue eyes, he stretched his cheek and tried to put himself together. He ran his hands through his dark hair, he had always been able to attract the attention of whoever he fancied, really. He was tall, well built, a soldier''s build and had been taken care of better than the average man due to his position. He changed at a speed that worked for his banging head and made his way back into his office. It was spotless, the sofa that was tucked in the corner looked as it did when he had first ever seen it, the large stone meeting table that sat just off the centre of the room, with the glass panels revealing the edges of his Home ship and the vast abyss of space. On the other side of the room atop the dais sat his black stone desk, now neater than he had ever seen it, the symbol of the Artelis house hung behind it spanning three meters high, the symbol of his House, the Valkyrie with her sword facing down, her feet together and her wings spread wide, reaching to either side of the large room. Sonny always thought it was ostentatious. Below sat Jax at his desk, furiously working through a data pad, she turned up at him, her sharp analytical eyes taking him in. She then vanished from site, there was a small clang as the datapad she was holding dropped to the desk, she then appeared right in front of him again with a small whoosh. ¡°It¡¯s too early for you to be shifting around me, Jax¡± she handed him a glass with something fizzing in it. ¡°Triple?¡± ¡°Quadruple,¡± she said, vanishing from sight once more and then arriving back at the desk. He was used to her teleporting all over the place, but it somehow made him feel sick when he was hungover. Jax had been with him since she was ten years old. She was known as a shifter, considered highly valuable people in the galaxy for their abilities to teleport people vast distances, move resources, and the most impressive, armies. She was put into his service by his father. He had watched her grow up from a little blonde girl with terror in her eyes, to the most competent member of his staff. She had become tall, and beautiful with a quick wit and terrible focus on work. She held his House together. She also frequently reminded him of this. Sonny didn''t mind when she did, he was grateful for her, and she was his closest advisor because of this. Nobody knew him like she did. That sometimes made him feel uncomfortable. ¡°There¡¯s still that echo in here,¡± he said before draining the drink, he shook violently, like being kicked in the brain by an angry ex. He fluttered his eyelids and allowed the light back in, it was still harsh, but manageable enough now. It was her special concoction with a whole bunch of chemicals and remedies that she had explained to him far too many times, but he still had no idea what it was. All he knew, was that it worked. ¡°Why did you wake me up so early?¡± ¡°It¡¯s midday¡± she said still working through the data pad. He looked out of the viewport of his office and saw the green lands of the ship teaming with people. A city in space, the size of a small province on some planets, held together by artificial gravity which held onto their atmosphere. It was the only thing he liked about being Head of the Artelis. The artificial sun that moved around the ship, merely a controlled fusion reaction that was kept in orbit by the ship''s systems hung above the height of the viewport. The day was bright, as it always was. The rolling fields that led to the small city in the hills, held his Houses offices and various departments, schools, the university and training facilities and barracks for his soldiers. Their housing was kept on the other side of the ship, away from the prying eyes of his office. He had always thought that was a nice touch. His personal team was kept in the building below him, the building that say away from the city, and the homes, and the building that was like a sharp spike that erupted from the land that travelled through space. It held their fighter ships and military assets. The people had freedom here, young people learning and experimenting, coming up with new discoveries and exploring new planets. However, they also needed to be ready to invade any planet at the drop of a hat or turn this beautiful disc with its lush fields and tall buildings into what it was meant to be, a fortress in the nether, designed for occupation and oppression. That was the part he really didn''t like, though unfortunately, that was where his talents lay. ¡°I¡¯m trying a new sleeping schedule, where I can¡­¡± ¡°Okay,¡± she said cutting him off, showing that she did not care what excuse he had today. ¡°What are you doing anyway?¡± he said walking over to the desk, ¡°Did you say something about Oso?¡± ¡°Yes, he¡¯s here, and waiting for you, and I¡¯m trying to find out why. You are way behind on your duties, but you always are so that can¡¯t be it¡± he decided not to give her the answer of ¡®I have a system¡¯ knowing that she knew that that wasn''t true and that the fizz hadn''t quite alleviated his pain quite completely yet. She looked at him intently dropping the pad to her knees, ¡°Now, I know that you don¡¯t like him, but be careful¡± she warned. Sonny sighed deeply. ¡°The man is responsible for more deaths in the galaxy than you could imagine¡± he said knowing that she was more than aware of this. He was truly a despicable man. He would sign off death warrants on people, cities, and planets and then deny any actions that he would have had in those actions. He specialised in clean ups, clean ups that led to investment into planets to get them back up and running, making a fortune for him and his cronies along the way. ¡°Regardless,¡± she said, her head tucked into the datapad once more. ¡°I really hoped he would have been dead by now¡± he said his turn now to shoo her off of her seat. He put his elbows on the desk and rubbed his eyes. ¡°I¡¯m ill, tell him to come back¡± he didn''t need to look at her, he could feel her burning gaze on him. He took in a deep breath, tried to compose himself as best as possible and then said, ¡°Okay fine, let him in¡± ¡°He¡¯s still making his way off of his ship¡± she said now sitting on the side of his desk still working on the data pad. ¡°Could this have anything to do with Yeley?¡± ¡°Yeley?¡± he said, now standing and peering over his desk to the port which was visible from the dais, and there it was, a Matise interstellar Yacht, the vessel of choice for his father''s attache. He slumped back down. ¡°What¡¯s happening on Yeley?¡± ¡°No, can¡¯t be that, it¡¯s just some riots¡± she said slowly, still scanning the pad, ¡°What did you say to Valentine last time you saw him?¡± ¡°Nothing really, just that I hoped that he got skewered by his own people in a lynching¡± she shook his head, ¡°Nothing out of the norm¡± he said returning his eyes to the palms of his hands. It was a few moments and then there was a knock at the door, they swung open and unveiled the man, Oso. A mummy that looked as though it had died decades ago, but didn''t seem to have the space in his schedule to stop working. His pale grey skin sagged on his bones, his eyes almost no longer visible under his immense eyebrows and overflowing forehead. It was like he had been inflated once and his skin never retracted. He also seemed to get a fright as the door was opening, looking up at the mesmerising act of a door opening. They probably didn''t have doors when he was born, thought Sonny. ¡°Minister Oso¡± Jax said warmly, shifting to his position in a flash, he jumped as she arrived in front of him from thin air. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°Ah, Commander Quillium, you become lovelier¡± he wheezed after his brief fright. Sonny watched them from behind his desk wondering how long it would take the relic to get around the Houses table. It sat Eleven with more than enough space to ensure that there was no way to reach the person sitting next to you. Sonny closed his eyes as he saw the fossil was going to walk around it, and his pace had decreased since he had last seen him. ¡°Super creepy, Oso¡± Sonny shouted. The old man either didn''t hear him or ignored him. He got a violent look from Jax, he raised his shoulders in question. ¡°Thank you, Minister, may I get you some refreshments?¡± ¡°I have a member of my staff bringing me my tea,¡± he said in three breaths. She bowed and gave Sonny a look as to say, ¡®take-this-seriously. He put his head back in his hands and remained that way until he heard Oso sit in the chair across from his desk. He couldn''t believe how long it took. ¡°Ah, Oso, thank you for joining me, you look great,¡± he said flatly. The old man chuckled without expression. ¡°Is it that babies are that nutritious or is it catching them that keeps you so fit?¡± The staff member with his tea was standing behind him, trying desperately to hold back a laugh. He must have arrived in the room some time ago and followed the old man to his chair. The old man must have chosen not to hear this. ¡°What can I do for you, Oso?¡± he said waving his hand at the servant, he wouldn''t be sure if Oso would notice that they were there. The staff member placed a teacup in front of Oso, and poured the tea from a delicately designed pot. It looked like an old Sha-En styled teapot. His treasures of war. The tea stank, so Sonny held his hand up to indicate that he was fine and Oso¡¯s servant made their way out of the room while the Minister readjusted his deep purple robes, the man had no strength so it was a tough watch. He finally managed and then adjusted the same purple-coloured headdress. ¡°Lord Matise,¡± he said as though just realising that Sonny was there. He couldn''t remember how many times he had told the old man that he didn''t like being called by his family name. ¡°Thank you for hosting me,¡± he said with a small bow of his head. ¡°No problem, how can I help?¡± ¡°I have been asked to deliver a message to you, on behalf of your father, the High Lord Rene Matise. He sends his greetings¡± ¡°Hi. Now, why are you here?¡± he said leaning back into his chair. ¡°Bad business, I am afraid, you have heard about Yeley, I am sure, being so fond of the planet yourself?¡± Sonny had heard the news just moments before from Jax, and felt surprised that a visit from Oso was to do with some riots. He must have missed something here. The fact that a Planetary leader was dealing with riots on their planet was not anything peculiar. In fact, most of the time it was to be expected, and it was also something that Yeley had had happen a number of times before. In saying that, Pac Traes, was a good man and allowed his people to participate in their government. It wasn''t anything new, the Planet leader and his more talented wife, Eher had navigated times like this before. It was an important planet, being the agricultural centre for their region, an entire planet dedicated to the food production of twelve planets, most were independent but the planets spread across three regions, Sonny¡¯s own, the Artelis, and the Dorlec led by Joseph Valentine. A waste of oxygen in Sonny¡¯s opinion. It also supported the Eshara, the known criminal underworld that was overtly headquartered near the planet, but again, that was nothing new, that wasn''t something that would cause Oso to come here. Victoria Saquiera, the head of the Eshara did work for the Houses. ¡°No, what''s happened?¡± ¡°Awful, really, it seems that the people of Yeley are rising against the dear Regent Traes. A coup d''¨¦tat seems to be on the horizon¡± Sonny noted that Oso still referred to independent planetary leaders as Regents, as though they held that seat for his dearest Autarch. ¡°Yeley is an independent planet, they dont belong to the Houses¡± Even as Sonny said it he realised, ¡®belong to the Houses¡¯, the Houses were an alliance of powers, they were not meant to be an over-ruling dominion, ¡°Why would I need to be briefed on this?¡± ¡°Ah, yes, well, we are aware of your fondness of the planet and the Regent and his family, so we have been tasked with asking that you do not get involved in this matter¡± he wheezed. ¡°This must be the fifth time that they have had riots, they have never been ousted before. Why is this any different?¡± Sonny was starting to feel nervous about this now. ¡°Well, it seems¡± he said nodding worryingly, ¡°This time, they may be successful, and the Houses cannot have a hand in this at all¡± he had an awful lurch in his stomach and it wasn''t from the hangover. He knew what that meant. ¡°I would never think of it,¡± he said with a smile, ¡°As I said, they are independent¡± ¡°Ah, good, ah yes,¡± he said digging in the pockets of his robe, he eventually pulled out a paper envelope with a gold seal, a seal of a crown emanating sun rays, and within the crown an eye wide open. The Autarch''s seal. The Autarch''s seal on paper, was an official order. Sonny took the envelope from the withered hand, and saw light emit from the space where he had touched it, authorising its opening. ¡°An official order telling me to stay out of Yeley?¡± Sonny said, trying not to say it through gritted teeth. He thought of the last time that he had held a paper order with this seal upon it. ¡°Or having any contact with any representative of it,¡± said Oso. If Sonny could determine any emotions from the man he would imagine that he would be relishing in this moment. So they were getting him out of the way so that they could take the planet unimpeded. ¡°Understood¡± he wondered how little effort it would take to end this man. ¡°I know that these may be difficult orders¡± ¡°We both know what I do when I get difficult orders,¡± Sonny said with a warning smile, ¡°Will you be staying long?¡± Sonny said now wanting this man out of his sight as soon as humanly possible. ¡°No, unfortunately not, I am now on my way to Dorlec space, to meet with Lord Valentine¡± ¡°Similar orders, I would imagine¡± hoped. ¡°Something of the like,¡± said the ancient wicker man who endeavoured to stand, though Sonny could see he was having difficulty. He didn''t help. ¡°Of course¡± Sonny smiled through his anger. ¡°It was good seeing you again, Lord Matise¡± he said bowing his head again after managing to stand up, somehow there was another pop, but Sonny had no idea what part of the anatomy could have popped from just standing. ¡°And you¡± said Sonny bowing his head, ¡°Just one more thing Oso¡± said Sonny unable to help himself, ¡°I am aware that you always travel with your entire family¡± ¡°Always, my Lord¡± Sonny stood at the answer, allowing his imposing frame to dwarf the man even across the desk. ¡°Next time you arrive at my port without notice, I will throw your ship and your entire bloodline into a star, understood?¡± for the first time Sonny saw the man¡¯s eyes, he looked taken aback, ¡°Apologies my Lord, it will not happen again¡± he said again bowing. Sonny sat back in his chair and eventually turned it to an angle to look out of the large viewport, staring out into space, he could no longer watch Oso labour his way to the door. Yeley, he thought, that world, and all that it meant. Once Oso had left the room and the doors closed once more, he spoke, ¡°Jax¡± she arrived before he had finished saying her name, ¡°What did he want?¡± she said eagerly, then she saw the envelope, ¡°Oh hells¡± ¡°Get the idiots¡± Once again she vanished, but this time arrived back with two men, one in a towel and one that must have been sitting down when she transported him, as he fell over as he arrived. He still had a fork in his hand with some noodles on it, his only reaction was to lay on the floor legs are arms up looking at the fork. He had been transported enough to know what had happened, and now merely was angry that he never got any warning. The one in the towel just saluted. ¡°Lord Sonny!¡± Top shouted with his hand posted to his forehead. ¡°It¡¯s midday, why are you in a towel?¡± Sonny said, drawing in a look from Jax. ¡°Apologies my lord¡± he said his eyes looking at least three feet above Sonny¡¯s head. ¡°Alright, Jam?¡± Sonny said to the man on the floor, still staring at the remnants of his lost lunch. These men could not be more opposite, Jam, was dark-featured, spoke slowly and always seemed to have his eyes halfway closed. Top, was a labrador, blonde, with a permanent smile and always filled with energy, everything was fun for Top. ¡°Peachy,¡± said Jam from the floor glaring at Jax who was not paying him any attention, ¡°What did he want?¡± she said. Sonny filled the other two in before starting. Jam mentioned that he saw the ship coming in, he had suspected that they were all going to be arrested. He didn''t clarify what for. Then after a ¡®yes, yes, yes¡¯ from Jax Sonny continued, ¡°The Houses are looking to overthrow the Traes on Yeley¡± he didn''t stop at Jax¡¯s expression as she was the only one that knew what this actually meant, ¡°I haven''t heard nearly enough about this, I need you two to find out what is happening there. All we know is that there are some riots and Oso mentioned that there is the threat of a coup, though I dont think we can believe that¡± ¡°You want us to go meet with the Regent?¡± said Jam, at his usual slow pace. ¡°We can¡¯t¡± Sonny said tapping the paper envelope, ¡°We have been barred from even making contact, even from representatives. Do not contact anyone from the planet, or be involved with the planet, use your wiley ways and find out what the hell is going on here¡± he added in reaction to the look that he was now getting from both of them at the difficulty of finding out what was happening on a planet, without being able to interact with anyone associated with the planet. ¡°We need to meet with Victoria,¡± he said to Jax, ¡°But I need to go there with something, I dont know if she is already in the loop, if she is I am sure she is on a war path about now. We need to resolve Yeley quickly and quietly, and we need to hold Victoria off which means that we need a plan. Get me those things¡± he said, ¡°Yes Lord Sonny!¡± bellowed Top. Sonny closed his eyes. ¡°What are we looking for?¡± said Jam, shaking his head at his compatriot. ¡°I don¡¯t know just yet, anything that links the Houses to the planet that we don¡¯t know about. Check what¡¯s happening with the Dorlec in particular¡± he felt proud at the faces they pulled when he mentioned that House. ¡°There is something else happening here¡± they nodded. ¡°Ma¡¯am¡± Top said in Jax¡¯s direction, slightly uncomfortable, ¡°It¡¯s quite far to my quarters¡± looking at his towel and looking at the door. She grabbed him by the shoulder and vanished, arriving back in a second. She looked at Jam, who held his arms out and just said, ¡°I¡¯m good¡± ¡°Send word as soon as you have anything¡± and with that he made their way out of the room, already using their comms to make calls. Sonny heard him trying to explain to the person on his comm why he hadn''t spoken to them for so long. They were idiots, but they were very resourceful, and effective. Most good smugglers were. He could see that Jax was boring a hole into the side of his head, but he didn''t look, wanting to think this through for a moment. ¡°Do they know?¡± she asked quietly. ¡°Get us a meeting with Victoria¡± he said turning to her. She nodded and vanished from sight once more leaving Sonny in his office alone. He could feel his hangover more than ever now and picked up the small glass that Jax had given him and finished it. There was no way that this was going to end well. Chapter 6: Paba Rebapa She took his hand and allowed him to lift her up, he smiled at her again, she was still looking at him confused. The smoke in the room was still dissipating and his vision was clearer now. ¡°Are you okay?¡± he said bringing her to her feet. She nodded, her eyes not leaving his face, he saw that she looked over his shoulder at the guard behind him. He didn''t look back. He knew how violent that was, and he didn''t really want to look back at it himself. The door to the inside of the ship opened and she quickly pulled him closer, ¡°Don''t say anything about the disease¡± ¡°I¡¯m clear though, right¡± She just looked at him sternly and turned to the door where they were met by the pilot, standing in full exo-suit and in the way of the door. Meno noticed that, unlike the other guards, she, he thought did not have any weapons on her. She was also far smaller than the guards he had seen, standing only about five feet and a bit squat. She stood with her arms held out on her hips, ¡°I know about the disease,¡± she said in a sassy tone, ¡°I literally just had to disinfect my ship¡± she pronounced the, my. It seemed Angie was also slightly taken aback by her size, but didn''t mention it, instead saying, ¡°Thank you for your help¡± ¡°Do you have the planet''s name?¡± she said through the voice modulation of the mask. Meno could see that Angie was slightly confused by this question, and looked at him. ¡°Once we get into orbit, I¡¯ll tell you,¡± he said, remembering Worrec¡¯s warning. The pilot just stared at him for a moment, Angie looking between the two. ¡°Fine,¡± she said, again in a rather sassy tone, even through the helmet, she turned and walked through the doorway, she had been standing in. Meno and Angie looked at each other and followed her through. Meno suddenly considered the current standing, they were still right outside of the Pillar, which meant in range of their weapons. ¡°We need to leave quickly, the Dorlec would have contacted the Pillar¡± he said making his way through the steel tube which was the passageway in the ship, he could see closed doors with solid metal rivets holding them in place. The ship seemed old, but solidly built. The floor clanged and echoed as they walked through, with only a steel door in front of them. The pilot was trying to act casually but Meno could see that it was somewhat forced, even through the exo-suit. ¡°I hacked their comms as soon as they got close, they weren¡¯t able to get any information out,¡± she said without turning around, ¡°According to the Pillar, everything is happening as it should. Good job in getting rid of them¡± ¡°One of them is still alive¡± Meno said, at least he thought so, he didn''t intend to kill the man that he was fighting. He knew that Angie had shot and killed the one. Meno didn''t want to kill anyone. She stopped in front of him. ¡°Ship, lock the cargo bay, open authorisation, pilot only¡± the ship seemed to respond to her with a beep and a quick blink of the lights. Once through the steel door, Meno took in his surroundings, following the passage he noticed doors to his left and right, The pilot turned at the fourth door to their right and pushed it open, she held her arm out ushering them in. Meno poked his head around and saw that it was what he imagined was a mess hall. It held a small table that sat six, welded to the floor along with the stools. There was also a small kitchen tucked into the side with what looked like black rectangles on the walls. ¡°Wait here, I¡¯ll get us off the moon, then you,¡± she said pointing at Meno, ¡°Will tell me where we are going¡± Meno had watched the ship from the outside, hidden in the trees for almost an hour before he had seen Angie being brought down, from the outside, the ship had just been a giant rectangular box, made of steel, very much like the inside, though, darker in colour than inside. It was cramped, but the space seemed to be utilised effectively. He was currently sitting at the small table on one of the stools, trying his hardest not to draw the gaze of Angie who was standing at the kitchen counter her hands placed on the table surface and her eyes fixed on him. He smiled as he felt the ship take off, the strangest feeling he had ever felt, then it was almost as though the ship wasn''t moving again, ¡°Are we not leaving?¡± he said over to Angie, seeing that this was a good enough reason to break the silence. She looked at him strangely and then seemed to realise what he was talking about, ¡°Gravity engine, the bubble has engaged, you won¡¯t feel like you are moving until we land again¡± ¡°Ah,¡± Meno said quickly turning away and blowing his cheeks out. He really wasn''t doing well with meeting new people and for some reason, she made him feel particularly uncomfortable. He felt as though he needed to keep the conversation going now, ¡°What should we do about those soldiers?¡± ¡°Would you like to explain to me, exactly, what is going on here?¡± ¡°Um,¡± he started, feeling strangely grateful for the chance but not knowing where to start with everything that had happened that night. He decided to start from when Worrec walked into their home. To her credit, she didn''t interrupt him at all, even when he stumbled over some of the events and had to go back and clarify some of the unclarifie-ables, she just listened. He tried to explain that in all of this confusion, he really didn''t know what to make out of any of it. She just looked at him as he was saying it, he started to sweat, how could anyone believe what he was saying, it felt like he was lying. Something that he was awful at. ¡°Why you?¡± she said after he figured that he had told her everything that he knew. ¡°I asked the same thing, I dont know why. Worrec wouldn''t give me an answer about it even though I asked him twice and even when I realised that he was effectively going to be killing himself to help me, he just said ¡®Why not you¡¯ which I thought was a pretty shitty answer - sorry for swearing - but he did say that I wouldn''t like it and it kind of felt like there was going to be some tests, but I don¡¯t know from who, because he didn''t mention anyone else that he was working with, well, just the pilot, but I hear that she is on the run as well and that she can be a bit prickly, but I think that he liked her because he called her clever. I dont know it¡¯s all very confusing and I don¡¯t know what to do¡± he blurted. She blinked a few times before looking to the door where to Meno¡¯s horror the pilot was standing, she had taken her helmet off now. She had a round face with a massive afro that was parted on the side that, made Meno wonder how she had got her helmet over it. She had freckles that went across her cheeks and nose, and it seemed her sassy nature was expressed in her face as well with a wrinkled forehead and puckered lips. ¡°He¡¯s not contagious,¡± Angie said without any panic in her voice. ¡°I know, that Worrec guy told me he wasn''t. I also calibrated the sensors in the cargo bay myself, it said he was clear, so he¡¯s clear¡± she said with a flat expression. ¡°You talk a lot¡± she said to Meno who now felt the sweat coming through in waves. He tried to apologise but she continued before he could speak, ¡°Planet? We are in orbit¡± ¡°It¡¯s called¡­¡± Angie held her hand up to him. ¡°Let¡¯s make sure, shall we?¡± she said moving towards the pilot. She was much taller than her, but the pilot didn''t back down at all at first, then merely exhaled and walked down the passage. Angie tipped her head to Meno who followed. ¡°So you met this Worrec too?¡± she said as they walked through the passage. ¡°Just the one time, he told me to get on this ship and then he sent me some instructions about getting that boy, then I get a last-minute message about you and that he changed the manifest for me to be on this ship. So I got on and came down to this moon¡± she said. Meno felt slightly offended that he had just been referred to as boy, she wasn''t that much older than him. They stepped into the cockpit and Meno was mesmerised. Out of the viewport he saw the spots of stars that glittered in the abyss of space, twinkling. It was so quiet, it was so still. He walked further into the small cockpit which had some computer screens that had small holograms displayed off of them, showing symbols and numbers that he didn''t understand at all. He looked out through the viewport and saw the small grey moon below. Gol. the only place that he had ever known. Below the planet in the distance Meno could see the husk of what he knew to be the planet that Gol orbited, it was grey and lifeless, and nobody in the town even knew its name. He felt a strange lurch happen in his stomach at the realisation that he had been on that orb, and now he was disconnected from it, he was away from¡­ground. He was in a ship floating in space. ¡°Planet?¡± she said again, pulling him away from his existential crisis. ¡°Uh, it¡¯s called, Yelly¡± he said, knowing that it sounded wrong. The pilot looked at him strangely, and he cursed himself for not getting it right after Worrec had said it so many times. ¡°Yeyly¡± he said again, not sounding correct. ¡°Yeley,¡± said Angie, correctly interpreting his mishap. The pilot nodded and took a seat in the small cockpit, the screens and holograms swarmed around her and she started moving her hands around, the holograms moving in sync, shifting in and out of her reach. On a few occasions, she suddenly hesitated and went again into a frenzy of hand-waving through the holograms. If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°The Dorlec,¡± Angie said calmly. To which the pilot nodded and said, ¡°I¡¯m going to open the airlock, they will only be picked up once we go. They had their helmets on right?¡± she said to which both Meno and Angie nodded. ¡°Wait, I broke the ones¡­¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, they have safety protocols for that. They will survive. Well¡­¡± she said looking at Angie, ¡°One of them at least¡± she mumbled through the helmet. ¡°Thank you¡± Meno said, which got him a rather strange look from Angie, but he felt that it was right. Maybe? ¡°It¡¯s going to take us about a day to get there,¡± she said, still toying with a few of the glowing holograms. Meno watched, rapt with interest, as her hands darted between the webs. He looked out of the viewport and saw the stars in front of him start to stretch around him, even though they weren''t moving yet. Gol still hung motionless below them. ¡°What¡¯s happening? The space in front of us, is, changing¡± he said, unable to take his eyes off it. It was as though a giant water droplet was in front of them, warping the light coming from the stars, the space in front of them seemed to be growing, blue. He was aware of Paba looking at him, and then she answered, ¡°It¡¯s the gravity cascade assembling. The gravity bubbles are forming and pulling in the light, You''re seeing the light gaining energy as it falls into the field ahead of us.¡± The stars ahead of him continued to twist and warp, like being underwater and watching sunlight refract through shifting waves. It was beautiful, terrifying, and unreal. ¡°I¡¯ve heard of that¡± he said mesmerised by it all, ¡°I didn''t think it would look like this,¡± ¡°It''s a series of gravity bubbles nested within each other¡ªthink of it as bubbles within a bigger bubble. The outer bubble folds space, allowing us to travel to Yeley almost instantaneously from the outside perspective, we will arrive there in a few seconds in real-time. But inside the inner bubbles, we''ve adjusted the time dilation so that time passes faster for us, so we experience time more normally, not quite the same but faster than we would. So, while only seconds pass outside, we get a day during the journey,¡± she explained excitedly. Meno smiled as she spoke, ¡°Without the gravity cascade, it would take us months to get there, and space travel would be far more limiting. This way, we have time to prepare and aren''t just jumping from place to place in an instant.¡± she said delightedly. Meno looked at her, her expression lost in awe at the mechanics of the travel. ¡°Sorry, you probably knew all of that,¡± she said, now blushing, ¡°I didn''t understand a word that you just said¡± he responded smiling at her. ¡°Now who talks a lot,¡± said Angie, who turned and walked back to the mess. Meno caught her smiling before she left though. The Pilot got off of her seat and Meno, held out his hand realising that he hadn''t introduced himself, ¡°I¡¯m Meno, by the way,¡± She looked at his hand, seeming to try and decide whether she should continue with her previous sassy attitude or not, but took his hand and said, ¡°Paba Rebapa¡± she didn''t smile, ¡°Don¡¯t touch any of my stuff¡± he nodded and followed her out of the room. ¡°So why would you want to experience more time while travelling, that seems to be counterintuitive?¡± ¡°They say that it¡¯s so ships and personnel can have more time to have everything prepared for when they arrive. The military will be fully armed and briefed when they arrive on planet, or a transporter can have everything ready to deliver once they get to their destination. The real reason is simple. The higher-ups dont want people living longer than them¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± he said still following her as they got into the mess. Angie had taken her place once more at the table. ¡°If you experience time like that, every time you travel, you only experience seconds, but for everyone else experiencing time normally it can be weeks and months. They believe that it''s risky to have people being separated from normal times like that, they think it gives them some kind of power over them¡± It was strange the way she said, they. Angie popped in, ¡°The first explanation is the real one, you want to give people on ships time, otherwise they are constantly on the move¡± ¡°And they dont age,¡± Paba said petulantly, ¡°Well not normally anyway¡± Meno took his seat and looked at Angie, Paba still stood close to the door and they spent a moment just looking at each other. It somehow didn''t feel awkward, as though they all knew that this was a strange situation to be in. Nobody really knew what to say, and they weren''t judging the others for being in the same situation. After a few moments, Paba said, ¡°There are some jumpsuits in the crew quarters, there is a water shower as well. I¡¯ll get some food packs done for us¡± ¡°A water shower on a ship like this?¡± Angie said, Meno just looked between them, ¡°I know right?¡± Meno experienced pure, absolute and undeniable ecstasy in the water shower. He had never felt anything like it in his entire life. The water was warm, almost hot, the pressure hit his body and he felt as though he was being massaged. There were liquids in there that cleaned him without burning his skin or leaving an oily film. He laughed while he was in the shower, not able to believe that such a luxury existed in the galaxy. It was a hidden treasure of such divine profoundness that he just stood in the small compartment and wondered what else this galaxy had to surprise him with. The soaps smelled of fresh flowers, which he found by picking up the bottle and reading it, and he only imagined that this was what Dot must have been describing when she spoke of wondering fields in the homeworld where she had grown up. There was a product for his hair, though it was not as effective as the soap but felt just as amazing. He had found pure bliss. Once Angie had told him that he had spent enough time in there, he got out and pulled on the jumpsuit that Paba had told him about. It was made from a thin, elasticated material that hung loosely over his body. It was so soft, it was warm but still allowed him to breathe. He then put the necklace around his neck that Worrec had given him, inspecting it again, the writing on it was slightly faded, and it didn''t look like anything that he had seen before. He placed it under his shirt. He had placed the exo-suit next to his bed and compared the hardness and quite frankly, the smell of the two. He much preferred this new jumpsuit to anything that he had worn before. And to make matters better, he had a bed in the crew quarters. It was soft, and smooth and had a fabric that flowed like water, with a pillow that was like a round barrel. It was, puffy. He dared not lie on the bed, but stroked his hand across the soft material, listening to the relaxing sound it made as his hand washed against it. This must have been the peak of luxury, he thought. Worrec had really pulled through for him here. If only the people on Gol could have seen this he thought. He took and moment and turned away from the bed, sitting on the floor. He wondered how Mr. Dimitri was doing. He was under no illusion that he would die in the morning, and if he understood Paba, he would die only after they arrived on Yeley. He knew that this was what the old man had wanted for him, but his heart felt sore, and the lump in his throat swelled. He was so grateful to the old man, but he wanted to be there with him in the end. ¡°Meno, your food!¡± bellowed Paba from the mess. The crew quarters were the very next room so he could hear her clearly. He stood up, blinked himself out of it and shook his head. He walked into the next room with a large smile on his face, ready to face whatever was coming next. ¡°Were you laughing?¡± Paba said her face once again construed into that look somewhere between disgust and curiosity. Angie just laughed. ¡°He¡¯s never been in a shower before¡± she added to Paba who was still looking at him with her nose now wrinkled. ¡°I could tell,¡± she said and then gave a short burst of laughter. ¡°Come eat, it¡¯s getting cold¡± she said pointing at a plate that was at the table, ¡°Angie¡± she said to Meno emphasising her name, ¡°Wants to run through the plan, that I told her, I dont know anything about¡± Angie rolled her eyes, but Meno could see that there was something in Paba that she found humorous. He saw that the black rectangles on the walls were now lit up with the same type of holographic displays as what they saw in the cockpit. The same Images that stretched from the panels told them their status on the trip, their current ambient temperatures and oxygen levels. He marvelled at the images that popped out and rotated in thin air. The food in front of him, was a small bowl of what looked like grains, and something orange and red. He inspected it, having only ever been treated to the soup packs that were delivered by Angie and her team in the town to which they would add mushrooms and herbs. This was far more solid, it wasn''t the porridge that he was used to. He looked at the pack that it was resting on and it said, ¡®Beef, kimchi and rice¡± in plain writing. His mouth exploded with flavours, the beef was juicy and somehow tender though chewy, the kimchi was sour and made his tongue warm, and the little grains of rice absorbed the flavours in his mouth. He looked up at the two, Paba with that crinkled, near disgusted look on her face and Angie with a warm smile, which as soon as she saw Meno look at her, changed to her usual stoic view. He didn''t say anything after his clearly strange reaction to having a shower. ¡°Tell me about, Worrec,¡± said Angie, still at her place on the kitchen counter. Paba began to answer what she knew about him. Meno sat and took in every word that she said, he found her fascinating by the end of it. It seemed that Worrec had found her in a university lab a few months ago, and had been moving her around under different alias¡¯, though she had only met him in person once, ¡°I¡¯m sensing a pattern here,¡± Angie said thoughtfully. She had found herself in a bit of trouble with the university board that had been escalated up to the Houses, she unfortunately fell into Nissar¡¯Ra space, which Meno didn''t know but Angie nodded knowingly. Meno could tell that she didn''t want to tell them what the trouble was and noticed that she began thumbing a pendant that she had around her neck nervously. ¡°It was just some trouble with one of the administrators there,¡± she said in a pleading tone not to ask more. Meno could see that Angie was not buying this either. ¡°Basically,¡± she said with a sigh, ¡°I got myself into trouble and I didn''t have anyone that could help me out of it, and then poof, Worrec arrives, knows my whole story and tells me that he needs to get me out. Next thing I knew, I was on a transport ship under a different name and heading out of the core systems¡± Angie considered her for some time before asking, ¡°You dont know anything else about him?¡± ¡°He¡¯s an asshole¡± she said getting back into her sassy nature. Meno nodded at Angie in an effort to corroborate. ¡°Everything that he told me I suspect was a lie, he just kept on saying that he knew stuff and that he could do stuff¡± ¡°And that¡¯s it? He didn''t do or say anything else?¡± ¡°He gave me some tech¡± said Meno pointing behind his ear. This seemed to catch Angie''s attention, ¡°He gave me one too¡± said Paba reaching for a Data Pad and bringing it up to Meno¡¯s ear, she tapped on the pad a few times and then harrumphed back into her seat. ¡°It¡¯s the same one that he gave me. Just comms tech, pretty standard but it does have an extra feature that makes it hard for scanners to pick you up. Normal black market kit¡± ¡°Nothing else,¡± Angie said as though expecting to hear more than this. Paba shook her head, ¡°I scanned my one thoroughly, his is the same¡±. Angie looked at Meno intently after this for a moment, which made him feel a bit uncomfortable before she decided to move on. The conversation about Yeley came next and Meno explained about the coin which he passed around, telling them that Worrec had mentioned that it was meant to represent ¡®Acess¡¯ and that they needed to give it to someone called, Harold - which he now hoped was correct after his blunder with Yelly, Yeyl, Yeley - nobody knew anything about the coin or could understand the writing that was on it. ¡°He mentioned that you have the codes to enter the planet¡± to which Paba nodded. Angie went silent for a long time, thinking it all through, ¡°And he said that you were being tested?¡± ¡°Alluded to that¡± Meno clarified, ¡°He said that getting off of Gol was a test, but in a passing way. He just said that it wasn''t all going to be nice, that I had piqued his interest¡± ¡°I would imagine that you have done the same thing¡± she said to Paba, who looked uncomfortable through this entire conversation, though, more so now. She thumbed the pendant around her neck holding it closer and closer to her chest. Angie took them in for a few more moments and then said, ¡°We still have twenty hours until we arrive, why don¡¯t we get some shut-eye and then we can pick all of this up with fresh minds¡±. The others agreed and Meno quickly scoffed all of the food down, stopping himself from chuckling from all of the flavours that he was experiencing. They made their way to the crew quarters, Paba left to her own room, harshly reminding them that she was the Pilot and that of course she had her own quarters. Angie and Meno took their places on their beds. Meno was in wonder when he actually got into his own, it was like slipping into water, but warm and smooth. Angie wished him a good sleep and turned the lights off. He stared at the ceiling of the quarters for some time thinking of the people of Gol, thinking of Mr. Dimitri and everything that was yet to pass for him. Thinking of Hellen and what she would be saying to him now. He thought about his entire life with them and how everything had now changed for them, how he was only going to experience new things now, like the shower, like that food. He drifted away without the ability to feel any emotional depth about any of them. He had not slept right for some days, and finally, he succumbed to the sanctuary of sleep. Chapter 7: Yeley The ash twisted in the wind as Sheppard descended into the town, the soot had already stained his Commander''s robe. His men stood before him, only sixteen were left. They stood in line waiting for his judgement. Standing next to them, a soldier was on his knees under the guard of two others, his helmet had been taken off as he sobbed into the coal that was once Gol. The smoking husk of the old man, former Captain Lor Dimitri curled up on the ground. He had been burned. ¡°We lost nine in total, Commander¡± he hated Smik for always needing to say something, as though stating the obvious kept him relevant somehow. Sheppard stood, and like he was taught, allowed the silence to hang, only the rippling of his cloak in the winds of the broken town. ¡°Commander, we¡­¡± It was a swift hand gesture, all that was required with the tech that Sheppard had been given, he felt the warmth of it beneath the skin on his upper right chest under the exo-suit. Blood sprayed from the Captain''s neck, through the suit, it didn''t need to penetrate any shield as he did not have it up. The captain gripped his throat, trying to clamp down on it. Sheppard had already disengaged all of their suit safety protocols before descending. He would die in agonising minutes, he would allow the rest of the troops to watch him struggle. The soldier with his helmet off sobbed harder. This was the price of failure in the Dorlec, this is how weakness was handled. The soldier fell to the ground. Sheppard applauded that he did not run for help, or try to escape. The rest of the soldiers knew not to either. An old man and a boy did not do this. They couldn''t have. Sheppard looked at the soldier without his helmet on and moved to him. He had said that former Captain Angela Lawrence had said the name, Meno. if that was true, it meant that the old man had been by himself. He had succeeded in getting the boy off of the moon with a Pillar looming overhead. Sheppard¡¯s mind had been locked in this thought loop since hearing the news. ¡°You allowed them to escape,¡± he said without emotion, without judgement. The man had managed to place a tracker on the ship before he had been jettisoned off. That had been good work, but Sheppard knew what he needed to do, he knew the standards of the Dorlec. Standards that he himself would need to face with Lord Valentine. He was in charge, their failures were his own. The ship had been picked up moving into Yelean space, which to Sheppard''s surprise, was seen as ¡®fortunate¡¯ by Valentine, who had then handed orders to Sheppard to make his way to the system where he would join with another Pillar on the outskirts of the Yeley. Sheppard didn''t know what this was yet, but Valentine assured him that he would have his chance to redeem himself. Sheppard clenched his fist, he would now be under the purview of another Commander though. It was not a mission that Sheppard believed could be failed. A simple collection on a planet with no military presence. A boy. He stood before the rest of the soldiers, ¡°Who else was here with him?¡± he was met with silence. ¡°Your Commander has asked a question¡± screamed Smik in a practiced enforcer''s voice. A soldier stepped forward, ¡°We did not see anyone, Commander,¡± he said, standing straight and at attention, ¡°We had three fall as we entered the town, the casualties stopped when the old man fell. We believe that he had an accomplice¡± ¡°Who left once he died,¡± Sheppard said looking at the charcoal corpse of the old man. Sheppard knew that this was true now, but he needed to understand how someone got here, or how they got away. They would be infected now. Who would do that, how would they do that? It wasn''t one of the guards, all had been accounted for, only one of the suits had been missing which they had seen on the security footage being used by the boy, Meno to get himself onto the ship. ¡°Fall in line,¡± he said to the soldier¡± until they had more answers, he would delay any punishment. From what Sheppard had seen, this seemed organised, perhaps even professional. They had not had any idea about anyone else being in the town, they had not seen the boy leave the town, and they did not see anything coming with the pilot. There were too many questions that needed answers before judgment was handed down. He may accidentally kill one of the spies who had answers. The Seer had been notified and would be investigating each man as they made their way back into the Pillar. Sheppard closed his eyes behind the comfort of his helmet, why would they go through all of this for the boy? ¡°We move to Yeley¡± he said turning to Smik, he would give the Lieutenant the honours of giving the order, more from fatigue than anything else. * Meno lay in bed for a while before getting up. He knew that Angie had left the quarters some time ago, he had been awake since then, but he didn''t want her to know that. He wanted some time to himself. Some time to reflect. He was caught between feelings, and felt guilt on either side, he was happy that he was getting a chance to go and explore the galaxy, something that he had always wanted, which made him feel guilty that he was excited about that rather than having to leave his home and Mr. Dimitri. He had not been there for the old man in his final moments, which, according to Paba and her science mambo jumbo, had not happened yet. His head was a mess. He exhaled deeply, recognised that he was completely out of his depth and sat on the side of the bed, knowing that the more he thought about it the less he would have a grip on it, which at the moment was tenuous enough. He needed to move. He was still in wonder at how comfortable the bed had been, the pillows too, the sheets. It was something that he had never even guessed would exist. A bed that pleasant. He wiped his face put the jumpsuit on, and made his way through to the mess where he could hear Paba and Angie were speaking, ¡°...buried about thirty-odd of them himself¡± he heard Angie saying in hushed tones. Meno stopped in the passageway. ¡°Lor Dimitri, the one I told you about, was the last one in the town, he was probably closest to him¡± he heard Paba sigh at this. He didn''t want to hear them discussing him, it felt rude, so he cleared his throat before entering the room, ¡°Meno?¡± Angie¡¯s voice came through. He entered the room with a broad smile and acted as though he had not heard anything, he bid them both a good morning before he added to his spinning head whether time, like that, existed where they were now. He would ask Paba, maybe. He probably wouldn''t understand the answer. ¡°Can I get you some coffee?¡± Paba said in the most delicate tone Meno had heard from her yet. He nodded with a smile, he didn''t want her to feel sorry for him, but he noticed her eyes lingering on him with pity. ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I overheard you when I was coming in, I dont want you to worry about me, I¡¯m fine, it was the best childhood I¡¯ve ever experienced¡± he said, more to Paba than Angie ¡°We weren¡¯t speaking behind your back¡± Paba said, her usual tone back, ¡°Punk¡± she added, holding a silver cylinder in her hand. ¡°It¡¯s fine,¡± said Angie with a humorous glance between the two, ¡°I was just filling Paba in on Gol¡± ¡°Ah, yeah¡­¡± he took a seat at the table and Paba passed him a cup that she had just poured from the silver cylinder. It smelt so rich, so strong, he held the sides of the cup and felt the warmth come through, it was strange he hadn''t noticed that he had been cold. He took a sip and smacked his lips. It was somehow bitter, sweet, comforting and jarring all at the same time. It seemed to make both of them smile. ¡°I¡¯m glad you''re up, Meno,¡± said Angie, ¡°We need to run over Yeley. We dont know what will happen there and we need to have a plan¡± Paba moved over to take a seat, Meno thought that they must have already discussed that this was going to happen and so she was ready for it. There was a datapad in the middle of the table that Angie tapped, from it a hologram of a planet emerged, sending light into the room. The sphere rotated above the pad. Meno was still in wonder at this marvel. ¡°Yeley has been in the news recently. There have been some disputes between the people on how they are being treated, it seems to stem from new regulations on food manufacturing coming from the Houses¡± she started, all of a sudden, all business. ¡°It¡¯s always the bloody houses¡± grumbled Paba. Her reaction interested Meno. ¡°The Yeleans believe that they are getting screwed over, to put it politely. The new regulations require Yeley to produce more but to lower prices as well, on top of that the shelf life of the products has been brought down, meaning that they cannot send products to sit on shelves, and on House planets, even if the food is still okay, it must be discarded. Basically, the people of Yeley are taking it out on the Planetary head, Pac Traes¡± The hologram from the datapad shifted to the face of a handsome middle-aged man. He had thick blonde hair, pushed back and it fell to his shoulders. He had a proud look about him, with a strong nose, ¡°And his wife Eher Traes, who is more of the people''s leader than Pac himself, who handles more of the administrative duties¡± Pac Traes¡¯ face left and it was replaced by a woman, tall, middle-aged with fine blonde hair and a kind face, with empathetic eyes. ¡°They have pushed back against some of these regulations, and have lost the contracts to supply two planets already¡± ¡°Surely, pushing back against the regulations is what the people would have wanted then?¡± Meno said, ¡°There''s no pleasing people, even when you do what they want,¡± said Paba ¡°A contract for a planet is large, it creates enormous farms and Yeley is basically a giant one. Them losing a contract means that people''s jobs are gone, which creates an economic issue, that means¡­¡± ¡°Blah, blah, blah, what do we need to know?¡± Angie steadied herself after Paba¡¯s interjection. ¡°Yeley is not a happy place right now. There have been threats of riots, riots lead to violence, violence leads to us needing to run away again¡± she said succinctly looking at Paba, who smiled with her head cocked. ¡°I don¡¯t know why Worrec is sending you there,¡± she said, not adding any more. ¡°Maybe to hide within the chaos?¡± Paba said, whose face was now resting fully on her hands, squishing her cheeks. ¡°He made it sound like it was a test,¡± Meno said, ¡°Well if that¡¯s the case, let¡¯s learn everything that we can so that you can pass¡± she said. He found it interesting that she wasn''t adding herself to anything that she was saying. ¡®They¡¯ were being sent to the planet, they needed to pass the test. Meno didn''t press the matter but continued listening to Angie. She continued in a reminiscent style to Mr. Dimitri about the entire situation. Yeley was in the middle of three regions, two official regions, being Dorlec space which Paba showed by expanding the hologram to see beyond just the planet but to the entire system, then to clusters, and then they were looking at the galaxy to the point where the Yelean solar system was just a speck. There were faint lines drawn in space that showed the divided space of the Houses. Dorlec space only intersected near the Yelean system, on the other side was the Artelis House, their space seemed to be a long curving line that went across Yeley¡¯s system. The third was a small pocket of space that sat in a spot between the two, far off from Yeley, but it tapered like a water droplet from the system and itself. This was the Eshara, which Angie explained housed the centre of the criminal underworld, ¡°And they just know about it?¡± Meno asked, ¡°It¡¯s one of those things that people just don¡¯t bring up, nothing will change it¡± ¡°Criminals are useful to the Houses,¡± said Paba, staring into the map, ¡°They can do things that are illegal for the Houses to do, they use the Eshara quite often¡± ¡°It¡¯s said that the Eshara also keep things in order¡± explained Angie, ¡°They control the other crime empires in the galaxy and hold them to account¡± Meno didn''t really understand how that made things any better but again, did not press the issue. It seemed that Yeley provided agricultural services to twelve different planets, as Angie stated, which was the right way to put it. Five of those planets were under House control, the rest remained independent. Angie commented on the fact that this area in the galaxy had a much larger ratio of independently controlled planets than most others. From what she was saying, it seemed to be because House Artelis was not that concerned with having planets ¡®belong¡¯ to it, as long as those planets did not cause a threat. ¡°The Artelis are led by Lord Louis Matise¡± ¡°Matise? I thought there was a House called Matise?¡± Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°There is, this is the son¡± ¡°He calls himself Sonny, and he is scrumptious¡± Paba said now leaning forward on the table, giddy and giggling, this was the most attention that she had paid the entire time. It seemed that she hadn''t met him, but she assured them that he preferred being called Sonny and that she knew this because she had watched every interview he had ever done. Ever. ¡°He rose to some prominence during the war. He¡¯s no longer just Rene Matise¡¯s son, but a House Head in his own right¡± said Angie nodding as well. ¡°Was he the one that helped you and Mr. Dimitri?¡± Meno asked remembering a story where a young soldier had come and saved their ship. They were to be deployed to a planet where, according to the old man, they had no chance of survival. Angie nodded. Angie also stopped Paba from energetically asking a question, ¡°I never met him, never even saw him¡± ¡°So¡­¡± Meno started wanting to know more about the region and the planet, ¡°With all of this happening around Yeley, there could be some major trouble to come?¡± ¡°It seems that way. Though I doubt that the Dorlec would pick a fight with Artelis, and the Eshara wouldn''t fight with either, their understanding with the Houses would be at risk¡± The rest of the conversation was filled with speculation as to how things could go wrong on Yeley, with one House getting in the way of another, the Yeleans choosing sides, the people of Yeley revolting against the Planetary heads, the Eshara doing criminal things. Meno tuned it out after a while. It was mainly just Paba and Angie arguing. He couldn''t break his thoughts from how exciting it was just to be going to another planet, going to a planet he thought he had only ever been on a moon. After a while the two decided to take a break, and Angie moved to the kitchen to make some more food, to Meno¡¯s sheer and absolute delight. Paba made her way to her room, ensuring that they all knew she was going to the ¡®Captain''s quarters¡¯. Meno grabbed the data pad and repeated the action of spreading one''s hands to expand the map, he kept pulling and pulling until he saw the entire region that the Houses occupied within the galaxy. To his surprise, it was not the entire galaxy but a region within the spiral, a third of it, but not the entire thing, as he had always thought. He thought that he was probably a bit foolish to think that it had been every inch of it. He saw the lines dividing the space between each region and saw that some were much larger than others. For example, the long curving line that he thought the Artelis House was, was just a portion of their territory, and their region acted as the border of space, wrapping around all the other regions, except one, which was outside of it. ¡°You can see why High Lord Matise wanted his son in control of that House, can¡¯t you?¡± Angie said as she noticed Meno running his hand along the ring of House Artelis. ¡°Where are you from?¡± he said without thinking if it was a sensitive question or not. She moved over with a smile and pointed to a darker region, it didn''t have as much light or systems as the others. ¡°Around here somewhere. I was born within the borders of the Hulfean Empire, so was Mr. Dimitri¡± she said with a sad smile. She was pointing at the only region that was outside of the Artelis border, though it was closer to the border of the Artelis. He had heard quite a bit about the Hulfeans, and their leader, the war god, Emperor Locne. It was said that he was thousands of years old and was the most powerful man to ever exist. Hellen had always told Meno that he was a myth and that the Hulfeans pretended that he was real because it made them sound powerful. Meno had heard Mr. Dimitri pray to Locne, and so had always known him as a symbol of their faith, a deity in their religion rather than a man. ¡°Why is it so dark in comparison?¡± ¡°Fewer systems. The Hulfean Empire is old, might even be the oldest, and it¡¯s been at war pretty much since it started, hence Locne¡¯s nickname, the war god. Some of the systems were destroyed, but it¡¯s mainly because of who the Hulfeans border¡± she said pointing to a region on the outskirts of Hulfean space, this was the darkest region in the galaxy, Meno had assumed that nothing was there. ¡°What¡¯s there?¡± ¡°The Masma were there,¡± she said, ¡°The old god Emperor Bel, the one that we went to war with¡± she said, harshly, ¡°The entire region is now a wasteland. The Hulfean are said to watch that area of space, to make sure that they never rise again¡± ¡°Was he that bad?¡± Meno said, hearing it out loud, he thought it was a child''s question. ¡°It needed all of the Houses combined to stop him,¡± she said sadly, ¡°Even then, we didn''t know if we would win¡± he thought of the stories that Mr. Dimitri had told him and Swan. That¡¯s when the last of the Sha-En arrived. ¡°Did you ever see the child of the Sha-En?¡± she laughed as he said it, ¡°No, I don¡¯t know if he was real or not, if that¡¯s what you''re asking. I heard of him though, everyone did. The boy that stopped the Kryptea and started the war with the Masma¡± he looked back at the map, in wonder. There was so much there, so much history that he didn''t know anything about. ¡°What about this area? It looks like there are three Houses all together?" The region was the brightest of all the galaxy, and in the centre, it had three Houses which all held a third of a large circle. ¡°That¡¯s Amorim, the Centre of Power in the galaxy. The Autarchs planet¡± she said clarifying, ¡°those three Houses are the Royal Houses, they control the rest of the Houses and work directly with the Autarch, they are part of the Royal Family¡± She pointed at the individual thirds, ¡°The Serifine, led by Anna Serfine is here. The Nissar-Ra, I don''t know who is in control of them, their last head died during the last war, and finally, the Matise, headed by Grand Head Rene Matise, he¡¯s the one that¡¯s really in control. The three Houses are meant to rule together for the Autarch, but Matise has the most powerful House in the Galaxy, it¡¯s effectively the Autarch¡¯s military¡± ¡°It looks amazing,¡± Meno said, looking at all of the light in the region, all of the trade routes and the planets, stars and everything. ¡°Hope that you never find yourself there,¡± she said watching him carefully, he turned to her not understanding, ¡°Firstly, you are on the run, and that is the centre of power, it¡¯s in the name, and secondly, that place isn''t for people like us, that¡¯s for the rich, the powerful. The outskirts of the galaxy will do us just fine¡± she finished with a smile. ¡°Now, what did Lor teach you about tech and how to handle it?¡± ¡°Well, that tech allows people to use energy in different ways, Professor Swan tried to explain it to me once about how it works, but I never really got it. He never really told me how to handle it specifically, just that I should be wary of people that have tech¡± She nodded, and something told Meno that she knew she had a ton of work ahead of her. ¡°Primers?¡± ¡°Just that they have natural abilities, like tech but they were born with it, he never said anything special about them,¡± Meno said slightly questioningly. It almost seemed like Angie was treating these as two different things. He knew that the major difference between them was that tech users, had advanced technology embedded in them; small generators that extracted energy around them, and then an energy signature that energy was fed into in order to create a desired outcome. You put the tech in and you suddenly have the ability to throw fire, if you were compatible. Simple. Primers, to his understanding, were people who could do this naturally without the need of tech. They were the first to develop the ability to generate energy within themselves. Hellen had been taking Meno through this training, though he had never been any good at it. ¡°Primers are not the same¡± Paba said shaking her head from the doorway, she had come back in and been standing at the door. Angie looked at her and enforced her opinion, ¡°Lor never liked them, had a stupid grudge against them. That''s why he didn''t like the training that Hellen was giving you¡± she said casually, but Meno felt oddly strange that she knew about the training and was acting as though she had been part of it, like she had been in the town with them. She seemed to notice this reaction, but pushed on in spite of it, ¡°They have a natural gift for it, he got that right, but because they can draw energy themselves, they dont have to worry about the tech''s limitations, meaning, they are always stronger¡± she said with finality, ¡°They also don¡¯t have your usual tech gifts. Tech that makes you stronger and faster is generic nowadays, there is tech that can help you push out energy but it draws a ton of power, and the generators are only so good, very few people have an affinity for using tech well¡± ¡°So a primer can draw on more power?¡± ¡°And they can do crazy shit,¡± Paba said with her eyes bulging. ¡°Like alter gravity, or teleport, or phase through shit, shoot lightning from their hands, or¡­¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Angie said with her hand held up, ¡°Thank you, Paba. She¡¯s right though, they are different, and they can do ridiculous things. During the war, we basically just supported them¡± ¡°You think that we are going to run into some?¡± ¡°It¡¯s possible, we just need to be prepared for anything. They are pretty rare, like one in one thousand rare. You managed well against two tech users, but that was basic tech, strength, speed, you have some tech now but it seems just to be comms¡± she said and Meno noticed that Paba after hearing this pulled a strange face, as though realising something, ¡°We need you to be ready for if we face something more¡± ¡°How can I tell a Primer from a tech user?¡± he saw that Angie approved of him taking this seriously. ¡°Tech users are going to have generic abilities, and it will be limited, like the soldiers in the cargo bay, they can be managed, some have shields that they can use, they are normally implants in their arms, if you see them, try and cut their arm off¡± ¡°Angie¡± Paba said with her face screwed up, but Angie didn''t respond, ¡°Tech is usually implanted in the body where it is most effective, your tech for comms, behind your ear, to use a shield in the forearm. Now¡± she said standing, Meno could see that she was getting into this, ¡°Not all tech is made equal, some tech is better than others, but they aren''t going to give high-end tech to goons, so if you see higher ranking soldiers, expect them to have better tech, more suited to them, it will be more effective. If you find them, get out of there¡± Meno sat in awe as he listened to Angie run through everything that she knew, he had been taught about some of this by the people on Gol, but this was different, this was so much more. He learned that tech users were often chosen for their affinity, some with high perception became seers, users that could penetrate the mind and figure out secrets and see if you were telling the truth or not. Those who were naturally fast or strong got tech that enhanced their muscles, and there were even some that had an affinity for tech that could give them the ability to teleport or to walk in a crowd and not be seen. His mind really started to spin when she started to describe Primers though. They seemed a completely different species, people born with the ability to manipulate energy itself. She wasn''t able to give Meno specifics on what they could do, simply because it was innumerable, some had the ability to disrupt the atomic structure of whatever they touched, making it unstable so that it would crumble when touched, or it would blow up as Paba added. Some had the ability to trap a mind in an illusion so much so that the person would have no idea that they were in one at all, and then if they were good enough, they could do this to multiple people at once. ¡°Who are the strongest?¡± said Meno, practically giddy at this point, this was the greatest thing he had ever heard in his life. Angie looked at him with apprehension, and he realised that he was probably not responding to this the way that he should be. ¡°The ones that can use fundamental forces,¡± Paba said with wide eyes, she seemed to be on the same level as Meno, ¡°Gravity, weak and strong forces, Electro magnetism, they can break¡­reality!¡± she said throwing her hands from her forehead, ¡°They crazy¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about them, that''s pretty much House Head territory, and even then I think there¡¯s only a few that have that kind,¡± Angie said clearly not appreciating Paba indulging Meno. all he wanted to know, all he would focus on trying to figure out now, was, ¡®How do I get this?¡¯, but he wouldn''t ask Angie as it seemed she was more worried about dealing with people like this than actually wanting to be one. Hellen had been training him in this, she had thought that maybe he could do it. He wasn''t very good though, but maybe he just needed to keep trying. What powers could he get? ¡°Meno¡± Angie said clicking her fingers in front of him, ¡°You¡¯ve had training on this¡± Paba¡¯s interest suddenly peaked, ¡°You were bad at it right?¡± Paba sank back into her chair. ¡°Yeah maybe I¡¯m just not very good at it though?¡± she nodded, ¡°Keep training, it obviously did some good against the guards¡± she said sitting back down as though the lesson was done now. He nodded but couldn''t keep his mind away from the possibility. These people must have been amazing. ¡°You dont want to be one anyway, they all think that they are better than everyone else,¡± Paba said her nose up in the air. Meno continued to study the Datapad for hours, looking over the Houses and their territories, learning as much as he could. He struggled to believe the amount of data that he had access to through the Datapad, he could see the leaders of each House, each more impressive than the last, he saw their Sigil, their histories. He did find that every now and then there were stories or histories about members of the Houses or the Houses themselves that seemed inflammatory, and exaggerated, but he didn''t care, he thought that all of it was amazing. Angie told him that this would be the case and that the Houses were not known for their modesty. He ate his food, and controlled his reaction to it, noticing that Paba seemed to find it, ¡®weird¡¯, but it was amazing, a sandwich with something called cheese, that had been toasted. He was living a dream. Meno had been sitting for hours pouring over the holograms when Angie told him that they would be arriving at Yeley soon. He shook himself, somehow seeming to forget that he was about to see a new planet! He made his way to the cockpit and saw that the blue light in front of them dissipated launching a heavy black curtain in front of them then Meno saw it, a great green and blue orb hanging below them, it had specks of white that looked like brush strokes across the planet. He had never seen colours like that, he marvelled at the sheer over the planet with the atmospheric shimmer coming from the rising sun. He had never seen anything so beautiful in his entire life, that was a planet, that was Yeley. Paba started with her now more familiar action of moving her hands through the holograms and the ship came to a stop over the planet. They were immediately hailed, and the face of a young and mildly bored man showed on the hologram, ¡°Entry codes¡± he said looking at Angie and Meno, lifting his eyebrow to them in greeting. Paba flung her hands around and then after patiently waiting, trying not to make eye contact with any of them said, ¡°Alright, Port one¡± he said surprised, ¡°Welcome to Yeley¡± and his face disappeared. There was a collective sigh of relief in the cockpit. Paba and Angie shared a look of relief and Meno had the distinct feeling that they had been more worried about this than they had led on. Paba began to move the ship forward after Angie and Meno strapped into the seats on the side of the cockpit, and Meno watched as they descended onto the planet. He was trying to gauge how big it was, after leaving Gol, he had seen what a moon moving further away from them looked like, but this was incredible, it just kept on getting larger and larger. The size of the planet was beyond belief. They sat in quiet anticipation as Paba dropped the ship into the planet''s atmosphere, and then dropped beneath the clouds. The planet, washed with greens and blues like Meno had never seen before, started to come into sharper focus and he could see the defining features of the farmlands below him, organised partitions of land neatly manicured and structured farms spread beyond the horizon. The mountains with their green-topped peaks and white stone cliffs stood in sharp contrast to the deep greens of the lands cut only by the deepest of blue rivers, sometimes turning black in the landscape as they fed the lands around them. Meno had to keep blinking with how bright the planet was, he had never been subject to so much sunlight, they were coming in on what must have been a perfect day. They travelled along the planet for some time as he watched the pattern shapes of squares and triangles of different shades pass below them, some red and some purple mixed in with every tone of green, and then a mountain appeared ahead of them. Meno needed to take two glances at it before he could really understand what he was seeing, and when he could understand what he was looking at, he physically laughed. It was an enormous statue carved into the side of the mountain, a statue of a woman sitting cross-legged with her hands held out in the air, water passing through her hands, forming great waterfalls that were captured by aqueducts below, but mainly turned to mist before hitting the ground. She was remarkable, blindfolded, and beautiful with basic robes that had been carved out of white stone. Meno could see that it was old, but it had been cared for. ¡°Who is she?¡± ¡°Must be Det¡¯em¡± said Angie who was also in awe of the view, ¡°She is said to be the founder of Yeley¡± The size of it was indeterminable at first; it seemed as though the white stone had been littered around the statue after its carving, but then Meno realized that this was a city, that spanned kilometres around the mountain, with tall stone buildings that were turned to face the great statue of who they believed was Det¡¯em. The buildings were made from the same white stone as the statue and seemed to all have great Pillars that held their roofs. The statue must have stood some five hundred meters tall and it had a great diamond-shaped frame that stood as the carved backdrop to the statue. Meno looked closer at the base of the statue and saw that it was, or had a building as part of it, with five levels, all of its floors sitting well above the city''s tallest building. The waterfall coming from her hands fell over this, what Meno could only imagine was a temple of some kind. It was spectacular, it was as though she were offering the land water. A great river stood between the farmlands and the city that fell at the foot of the mountain, with a grand highway that intersected the river and flowed into the city. Meno focused on the city and imagined that it must have spread for kilometres. Meno laughed again, holding his hand to his mouth. This place must have been bigger than the whole of Gol. Before the river and opposing the city was a large stone port with three enormous domes, each of different sizes. Meno could see that the port was itself enormous, stretching for kilometres within its own right. Great ships were docked there, with beautiful yachts that he had only ever heard of that were sleek and beautifully designed. He was struggling to comprehend the sheer scale of it all. ¡°It¡¯s beautiful,¡± said Angie, more to herself than anyone, and Meno looked across to see that it was not only he who had been caught in the beauty of this place. He smiled and looked back out of the viewport of the ship. As they got closer and dropped towards the white stone port, Meno kept looking at the great statue in the mountain as its head rose above them. It was looking up towards the clouds with eyes covered, her hair flowing behind her. This was a special place, he thought. As they came into land, Meno noticed a small congregation of people awaiting them, and that he was not the only one feeling the anxiety creep in, seeing both Angie and Paba begin to fidget and shift their feet respectively. He took in a deep breath and nodded to the other two. Once they docked in port one, next to a magnificent silver, metallic yacht that dwarfed their freighter, they made their way to the back of the ship and opened the cargo door. They took a deep breath and steadied themselves, each checking the other. The doors opened and they were met by three people, the first was an older man with what looked like a permanent smile etched on his face judging by the laugh lines, he was bald, hunched over and wore simple white robes that his wispy white hair suited. The other two were both in exo-suits, a man and a woman, him being tall and well built with dark hair shortly cut and a stoic expression, her also being tall but slim with blonde hair that suited her tan skin and a welcoming expression. The suits were similar to what Meno had seen before but they had a deep purple running through them and gold plating. ¡°I am Harold,¡± he said with a small bow, ¡°Welcome to Yeley¡± Chapter 8: The Queen of Midnight Victoria Sequeira, the Queen of Midnight, former General of the Masma under the control of Bel, the unequivocal leader of the galaxy¡¯s underworld. Sonny¡¯s next meeting. Before the war, the Houses had heard rumours of a young, talented and ruthless general who had emerged from within the old god emperor''s empire, a newcomer who had quickly gained a reputation for being able to manipulate entire systems without much effort. She commanded an enormous force, bigger than some Houses, that seemed to grow with each of her conquests. The Eshara. Rumours told of her ability to inspire leadership, though when looking closer, her main tool was negotiation, a tool that would be beneficial in her later life. After the destruction of the Sha-En, the Houses stood against the Kryptea, the war-like House that had committed the crime, but it wasn''t the Houses that claimed victory but rather the arrival of a Sha-En child. He had taken the head of the Kryptea Head, Jurgen Krietz. The Kryptea were enslaved into the Autarch''s service as punishment for their crimes. Bel, the god-emperor of the Masma, did not see this as fitting, and rather as a way for the Autarch to amass more power, and so war was declared. It was only after years in the war that the Houses received word from the now prominent figure of Victoria Sequeira, that she would turn against Bel and help the Houses take victory, she would provide plans, intel and her Eshara. Her condition was the safety of her people. The Houses won the war with the help of Victoria. Her people were brought into House¡¯s space, but there was no parade to their victory or sacrifice, there was no place for them to go, they were not accepted. Seen as traitors, as a plant by the god-emperor, and as too different to integrate. Victoria¡¯s people were on the verge of collapse, with no support, and her requests from the Houses were ignored. She turned like most desperate people do, to crime, but Victoria knew that petty crime would only turn their situation more sour, so she used her forces to take over criminal syndicates, not as an offering to the Houses, but so that they could sit upon those thrones. The Eshara were a battle-hardened army and proved too much for any organisation to stand against, and she knew too well that they would not stand together against her. Soon she united the criminal underworlds, creating an empire of her own, all under her people¡¯s banner. Her warship, the Imhullu was converted into a place of pleasure, gambling, drugs, alcohol, and men and women, all available on the ship she created a city on, now called the Lotus. It became the epicentre of vice in the galaxy, travelling between systems and offering its services to all in the Houses. It became the place where her empire could manage its affairs, a place of business that was frequented by judges, politicians and members of all Houses. She amassed dirt on all of them and took their power for her own. Naturally, this gained the Houses'' attention, but Victoria was now ready to renegotiate the terms of her people''s sanctuary. Her terms were simple, she would do the jobs that the Houses could not, the wet work, the dirty work, the work that placed pressures on planets that would allow the Houses to walk in and save the day, that would give them the opportunity to control more, to defeat the ¡®enemy¡¯. She would keep the underworld under control, in line. All she asked for, was the protection of her people. The Houses quickly accepted this, as it was an offer too good to turn down. Her people were now safe. The Lotus carried out its work, offering the depravity that no one would admit to wanting, but all did, but it was not a home, it was business. She worked to find her people somewhere of their own, somewhere that the Eshara could live without needing to be criminals. The Houses denied this, saying that it would cause too much suspicion, that it would be seen by the public as the Houses offering too much to a criminal empress. She should have seen it coming, but Victoria did not accept defeat, and like before, anything that she had, she took by force. It was a small moon, in a stationary orbit of a tidally locked planet that she found. A moon that was perpetually on the dark side of the planet, cast in the planet''s great shadow. She called it Midnight, and she hollowed the moon out and built her city, the home of the Eshara. Nobody stopped her, nobody would want the planet or the moon, but she did. It became the home of the Eshara and the palace of Victoria and gave her the new title of the Queen of Midnight. Sonny was not looking at Midnight now though, as he sat in his private yacht, looking out the viewport at her ship. The Lotus still looked like the old warship it had previously been a lifetime ago with its heavy hull, its turrets, and its multiple ports, but she had changed it, now it had an open roof with a suspended atmosphere that glittered as its ceiling. The city with ten square ten-square-kilometre ship had high rises that stretched into the atmosphere all blinking with lights and advertisements offering its latest casino offerings, new drinks, concerts, sex. She had built quite an empire. It was not unusual for Victoria to leave Midnight and take command of the Lotus, it was a way that she normally conducted business. Not everyone gained an invitation to Midnight, but all were welcome on the Lotus. It was only Jax and Sonny on his yacht, as it always was when he came to meet with Victoria, more of a cover than anything else. He wanted people to think that his character, ¡®the young, powerful playboy of the Houses was heading to the Lotus for debauchery¡¯ worked perfectly for him, and the fewer people that knew about his real relationship with her, the better. He looked out of the viewport of his yacht at the old warship, remembering seeing it during the war, and what fear it would bring. ¡°How are you feeling?¡± Jax asked from the yacht controls. She was one of the very few people in the galaxy who did not need to learn how to pilot a ship, she just did. Her shifting abilities were rare, her ability to be an interplanetary shifter was even rarer and highly sought after. Jax was Jax though, Sonny thought, she had learned how to pilot a ship because that was what was expected of her as a commander of the Artelis. ¡°I¡¯m worried about what she¡¯s going to do,¡± he said softly, opening his true thoughts to her. She didn''t answer immediately, but considered and then said, ¡°Just find out what she knows, tell her what we do, and then see. We can¡¯t get worried about what we dont know yet, right?¡± she said imitating the mantra that he gave her when her anxieties arose. ¡°Yeah, yeah, you''re a fucking sage Jax,¡± he said in good humour. ¡°The whole thing is a mess¡±. Jax orbited the yacht around the Lotus moving to the private port that was always given to him when he arrived. His position in the Houses warranted such treatment so it was not something that they needed to hide. ¡°Whatever, do you want me to come in with you?¡± ¡°No, you may need to jump to the idiots if I hear anything too bad, and I want you to be able to move at any time. If we hear something, particularly worrying, I need you to get out and get them without being noticed¡± ¡°Lemons¡± she said which would have seemed strange to most, but they used a fruit-based code word system and always had. He had found it easier to give her operational orders this way, she had been ten when she had started working for him after all. It had stuck. Lemon meant that things could go wrong quickly, and people would need to be extracted. At this point, they were running out of fruit. Sonny also could not remember all of their fruity plans anymore, but Jax did. ¡°Fucking lemon,¡± he said more to himself than to her, still gazing at the Lotus. Once they had made their way to the port, Jax masterfully docked the yacht and Sonny got himself ready. He would wear his military colours, his character demanded it. He had always been the ¡®seen¡¯ House Head, even in places like this. He also wanted to make sure that the Houses did not suspect him of trying to get onto Yeley, so this would offer a good cover. ¡°Make sure that you find out everything that she knows, and don¡¯t drink too much¡± she said straightening his jacket. ¡°You know I only drink by myself in misery. I dont like it when people see me cry¡± he said smiling at her as she adjusted his coat. ¡°Well dont do that either¡± she said her focus firmly on his uniform. ¡°Find out if she knows anything about the Dorlec, she has people in that space, and in the core, she may know more than we¡­¡± ¡°I know, I know¡± ¡°Tell her I say hi,¡± she said without smiling. He made his way to the vestibule and waited for the doors to open. The entrance of his ship had a great viewport, usually used for people to see him and his party as he entered a planet, now though, he saw the atmosphere from the Lotus move over his ship like it was being engulfed by a giant bubble of life-giving oxygen. He saw his welcoming party walking behind the bubbles line and he made his way down once the door opened. ¡°Cotton,¡± Sonny said with a giant smile and his arms held wide open, ¡°Lord Matise,¡± said Cotton with a bow, his bald head shining as he did so. He was somewhere between a monk and a hitman. Sonny knew him from the war, he was one of two of Victoria¡¯s closest advisors, and a formidable soldier, though his slight stature would not tell you that. His black suit hid the wirey strength beneath it and his features always portrayed a man who was very zen. Sonny always suspected that this was in compensation for his more base nature. He was accompanied by four people, assistants, bodyguards, and advisors, Sonny never really paid attention to them, and he knew that they were not to be noticed by people, but rather offer functions to Cotton. They never spoke aloud. ¡°Good to see you old friend,¡± Sonny said wrapping the man in a big hug, which Sonny always knew that he disliked, but was in line with his character, ¡°Business good?¡± ¡°Through celebration and commiseration, we thrive¡± he said with a big smile as Sonny released him, ¡°Jax not here?¡± ¡°Waiting in the ship, she said she¡¯s still trying to work off the headache from the last time she was here¡± Cotton smiled. ¡°Lady Victoria is waiting for you, but I must tell you,¡± he said leaning in, ¡°She¡¯s currently in a meeting with a Dorlec Commander¡± ¡°Is she now?¡± Sonny said understanding the warning from Victoria¡¯s advisor, ¡°Well isn''t that interesting?¡±. Cotton took Sonny into the ship and once again he marvelled at the hull of the former Imhullu warship, its thick steel walls. Once inside they got into a glider, with an antique style, always the mark of forced class. ¡°She¡¯s worried,¡± said Cotton, now that they were in the safety of the glider, ¡°And this Dorlec Commander suddenly coming in has not made her feel any better¡± ¡°I¡¯m sure¡± said Sonny as the glider left the walls of the ship and into the city where he was met with towering buildings, blinding lights and an open sky which showed the swirl of the galaxy and the planets within reach. It reminded him of his own Home ship the Artelis, though his ship offered far more green lands and a natural setting, this was a hard city. ¡°Anything that I should know before I get in there?¡± ¡°We were not contacted for the job, usually when destabilising a planet, we will at least get word of it, if not receive the contract directly. This time, we heard nothing¡± ¡°Wonderful¡± he allowed the cityscape to take him in as they drifted through the streets of the Lotus. It hadn''t changed much since he had been last, although that was only a few years ago. Each building had vibrant neon signs, advertising the delights within, people littered the streets dressed vibrantly in the maintained warm weather, walking arm in arm, cheering, and spilling their drinks off for their next adventure. Sonny noticed the ever-present Eshara guard patrolling the streets too, some marked with the hand print tattoo offering hommage to their Queen, all had the tattoo under the Eshara, it just depended where on the body they wore it, the most zealous had the print on their faces, used as a warning to all who saw them. It was shown in defiance of the Houses, the space that never accepted them, and now the Houses came to them, they wanted to show them who they were. ¡°Who is the Commander?¡± ¡°Sheppard, youngster, apparently on his way to Yelean space to stop the uprising if need be¡± said Cotton also fixed on the city. They didn''t even send a heavy hitter for this. Nothing here was making sense. Since when did Victoria take a meeting with a Commander anyway? Her tower came into view, the only building that did not show any lights or advertisements, it was at the epicentre of the city, for all to have a reminder of who held the power on her ship. It was the tallest building, and stark in comparison to the rest. The glider came to a stop and Sonny stepped out onto the street, hearing the crowds of the buzzing street as he got out, he heard a few shout out, ¡°Lord Matise!¡± with a wave and then a cheer from the crowd around them, ¡°Come party with us!¡± ¡°Where?!¡± one screamed as Sonny looked around, he plastered his large smile on and waved his arms giving them all a rigorous wave and shaking his hands in the air, they cheered more for him. Once they made their way into the building and the doors closed off the people''s view from them, Sonny caught Cotton with a rueful smile, ¡°Shut up,¡± he said, giving a small smile himself. As always, Cotton''s posse didn''t say a word, they just followed. The lift opened and they stepped in, heading to the top of the building. The elevator was adorned with gold and showed the luxury that the Lotus needed to exude. ¡°She would like you to join in the meeting with the Dorlec¡± Cotton said, clearly having just received the information himself. So she was communicating with her people even while in the meeting. He was quite sure that Commander Sheppard would not be aware of that. The doors opened and Sonny was met by the other most trusted advisor to Victoria, Penna Oryel. Taller than Cotton and slightly broader than her counterpart, she held a shortcut fringe and an irritated expression at all times. Sonny did not hug Penna. ¡°No trouble please, Lord Matise,¡± she said in her flat way, ¡°The Dorlec are waiting outside, we would appreciate it if you did the same¡± she finished to which Cotton gave her a nod. Covering their asses, Sonny thought. This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡°No problem,¡± he said walking into the room, he smiled at the occupants and relished in their terror at his arrival. There were five Dorlec here, four in Exo-suits that were standing and shifted uncomfortably, and one who sat on a high back chair whose face was construed in pure unadulterated terror, ¡°Lor¡­Lord Matise, sir¡± he said standing and saluting in his full military colours. A Luitenet, he had the usual look of a Dorlec, made, formed. The hair was too neat like it was plastered on, his skin too smooth, too pale, his build too manufactured. Sonny tossed his eyebrows at them and gave them a wicked smile. He made his way to the double doors of Victoria¡¯s office but before he could open the doors he heard the Luitenet plea, ¡°My Lord, Commander¡­¡± ¡°Okay,¡± Sonny said brightly as he pushed the doors open before the Luitenet could finish. He was greeted by a room that defined her, dark, with a massive window that looked over the city before her, two sofas that faced each other for one-on-one negotiation, and a small bar that held the finest liquors in the galaxy. Commander Sheppard staggered on his seat on the sofa, trying to look composed. Much like the Luitenet in the lobby, he had all the hallmarks of the Dorlec, neat, tall, created. He looked in shock at Sonny, ¡°Lord Louis¡± he said straightening his uniform as he stood, ¡°Sonny, please,¡± he said in his playboy way, as he looked at the window and the silhouette that stood blocking the lights of the flashing neon from the city and the star landscape above her. Sonny waved his hand to get the Commander to sit down again, which he complied with. She turned and faced him to which he nodded and said, ¡°Lady Victoria, ravishing as always¡± She turned to face him, and he was met by the familiar sharp lines of her face, the severe bob that barely grazed her chin emphasising her slender neck. Her eyes shone like sharp jewels, predatory, always looking for a weakness, Sonny knew, with a sharp straight nose that rested above her slightly curved, unreadable lips. She wore an all-black dress that was form-fitting and reached up her neck and down her arms, she was the epitome of elegance and danger. She wore no jewellery as it would deter from her. ¡°Sonny,¡± she said in her calm tone, controlled, practised, ¡°Allow me to introduce you to Commander Leigh Sheppard of the Dorlec,¡± she said not looking at him at all, ¡°He was just delivering a warning to me¡± Sonny didn''t stop that smile that came to his lips, ¡°Ah tugging that leash are they?¡± ¡°Please, my lady, this is not a warning,¡± he said standing again, to which Sonny again waved him down giving him an expression of, don¡¯t freak out. He sat again, and Sonny could see the anxiety he felt as he looked between himself and the Queen of Midnight. ¡°May I?¡± Sonny said pointing to the bar, he didn''t wait for an answer as he saw that Victoria made her way to the opposite sofa as the Commander, who cleared his throat trying to compose himself. Sonny picked up a very rare bottle of whiskey that had not been opened yet, a forty-year-old Hellen, he poured a large glass, for his character, and for him, and made his way to the sofa. ¡°Please my lady, we merely express our interest in your travelling to¡­¡± he looked over at Sonny who sat next to him, and clearly didn''t want to say the place''s name in front of him, ¡°Yeley¡± she finished tauntingly. He sighed, ¡°Yes, all we want to know is why you are heading there?¡± he said nervously, shifting as Sonny placed his arm on the spine of the sofa giving the Commander an encouraging smile before taking a large sip of the whiskey. Gods, it was good. ¡°My movements are a concern to the Dorlec, Commander?¡± she said looking at him with that predatory stare that she had, like a wild cat finding the best way to open him up. ¡°We¡­we are aware of instability on the planet, my Lady, so naturally when a ship like this moves towards a planet like that, we would have some questions around it¡± She allowed the silence to hang. ¡°I can assure you, Commander, the Dorlec have nothing to fear from me starting anything¡± she said allowing the rest to remain unsaid. The Commander seemed to be at a loss as to what his next move should be. He looked at Sonny for something and seemed to regret it immediately as Sonny just gave him another wicked smile. ¡°Very well then¡± he said standing and correcting his uniform again, ¡°Thank you for your time Lady Victoria¡± he said with a short bow, but as he was walking away he dramatically stopped and turned on his heels, ¡°I am aware, Lord Sonny of your orders from the Autarch to stay away from Yeley, and it¡¯s representatives, I would hate for any suspicion to come against¡­¡± ¡°I am aware that Lor¡­Sonny has been given orders to stay away from Yeley as well, I would hope that this meeting has nothing to do with that¡± Sonny smiled and gave a look of confusion at him, ¡°You are well informed,¡± he said smiling, ¡°No, I am here to drown my sorrows, Commander. I find that the Lotus has just the right level of depravity for a man like me¡± ¡°Yes, well, if this ship stays on its current course I would suggest departing. We wouldn''t want the Autarch to suspect that anyth¡­¡± ¡°Changed my mind!¡± Sonny said, placing his glass of whiskey on the table in front of him and standing in front of the Commander. He made sure to keep smiling, ¡°I can be fickle like that, I¡¯d like for you to call me by my official title, the whole one,¡± he said staring down at the Commander, ¡°And don¡¯t leave anything out, I know that the Dorlec have an extra moniker that they add there¡± ¡°My Lord?¡± Sonny just smiled down at him and nodded, ¡°Lord Louis Matise¡± ¡°No please, that¡¯s my title within the Houses, my other title please¡± The Commander was now sweating, and faltering, and with sheer terror pressed on, ¡°Prince Louis Matise, Head of the Artelis, Destroyer of the Bridge¡± Sonny spun his finger in the air to get him to continue, ¡°The crying/laughing Prince¡± ¡°Ah, that¡¯s it, there we go, doesn''t that feel¡­right¡± he said taking the smaller man by the shoulders, ¡°You see that¡¯s my title, Commander, that¡¯s who I am, a part of the Autarchs family, not just a House Head. Why would I of all people defy him?¡± ¡°Apologies, Prince Matise,¡± he said bowing his head. Sonny slapped him on the shoulder and then turned back to the seats, ¡°No problem Commander Sheppard of the Dorlec, now, you can take your leave. It seems that I don''t have long on this ship and I want to get as much pleasure packed into that time as possible. I wouldn''t want to arouse any suspicions¡± he said grabbing his whiskey up again and taking a big gulp. Commander Sheppard gave a deep bow and left the room, ¡°I would like my usual apartments, six bottles of this whiskey, some of that blue stuff¡­¡± Sonny said keeping up the act as he waited for the Dorlec soldiers to leave, ¡°I¡¯d also like whatever celebs you have here to come and see me¡± There was a knock on the door telling them that it was clear. ¡°What is going on here, Sonny?¡± she said with her usual tone, but there was a desperation in it now, ¡°We aren¡¯t sure yet, I did get that order that the young Commander just mentioned, and I also got a warning from Oso,¡± he said looking at her seriously, ¡°It looks like they are going to be taking Yeley¡± ¡°You told me it was safe,¡± she said, now looking at him the way she had been looking at Sheppard. She took in a breath knowing that it was not Sonny who was doing this, ¡°Do they know?¡± ¡°We are trying to figure that out, I am barred from any contact with the planet or any of its representatives, which means any move I make will cause a stir. I can¡¯t find out what¡¯s happening on the planet, but I have people looking into it. So far we have seen no evidence that they do, but it doesn''t change the fact that the Dorlec have been given permission to move into Yeley¡± ¡°If they don¡¯t know, why didn''t they ask me to help with this?¡± ¡°Cotton mentioned that,¡± he said, only now having time to consider it. It was strange. This was the type of work the Eshara did, this was their forte. Why wouldn''t they have been contracted for this? ¡°A Dorlec Commander?¡± he said, that setting in for the first time. Victoria did not entertain Commanders, ¡°Valentine requested the meeting, he didn''t give much away though. He just came from a moon called Gol, nothing there, seems he was there for a while and has now moved into Yelean space¡± ¡°Seems a bit green to be taking a planet¡± Sonny said looking at the door that the Commander had just left through. ¡°There are another two Dorlec Pillars moving into Yelean space¡± she said being as well informed as Sonny had hoped, ¡°I¡¯m handling it,¡± she said as though this was a passing conversation, ¡°What other reason could they have to want Yeley?¡± ¡°It¡¯s a gateway to owning seven independent planets¡± Sonny said, having thought about this question since Oso had handed the order over on Artelis. It seemed that his words confirmed her own thoughts, but he knew that her mind would be sitting firmly in the worst-case scenario right now. ¡°Take Yeley, you get the rest. The problem is that the Traes have never given any reason for the Houses to take them. Pac Traes has always been aware of his position and has carefully danced through any issues that give cause to the Houses stepping in¡± he said taking another sip of his whiskey, ¡°Still, we should have seen something like this coming¡± ¡°What do you need from me?¡± she said, as always looking for how a problem could be solved. ¡°Intel, I need to know what¡¯s happening on Planet, and what they are looking to do, you have people on Planet, I need you to activate them¡± ¡°They already have been, I have people in the Temple, the guard and in the revolutionary group, but nothing has come from it yet, which leads me to think that this is going to be an attack. The Rebel group is led by a Professor, Grasci, but they are not organised enough for this, and he isn''t disrupting the government enough to create a coup. The temple guard knows nothing about what¡¯s happening, and the other country heads are not planning anything. If we didn''t know about the Dorlec moving in, I would say it was business as usual¡± She had wrung her hands twice now Sonny noticed, he didn''t need this woman getting nervous, that would not be good for anyone. She hurriedly stopped and delicately grabbed her glass of wine, trying to elicit some control back. Sonny felt her gaze heavily on him and he knew what she was going to ask, but didn''t want to risk the question coming up if he was wrong, he wasn''t. ¡°Have you heard from him?¡± ¡°By proxy, Az got in touch but he was cryptic, he could already be on planet¡± She seemed not to be able to decide whether this was positive or negative news. ¡°I know it¡¯s not the best solution, but we don¡¯t have many options here¡± ¡°Well something best happen, Sonny,¡± she said in a warning tone, all of her power seeming to be on show, ¡°Or I take the planet myself¡± They ended the conversation shortly after, dealing with logistics for communications and response plans for the worst-case scenario on Yeley. Sonny needed to do whatever he could to ensure that she did not act herself, it would cause more problems than were necessary. He really didn''t need that at the moment. On making his way back to his yacht, he caught something out the side of his eye as he moved through the city on the glider, it wasn''t much of anything really, but he had seen a man looking directly at his glider, speaking, what made it strange was that the man was alone trying to cover himself in shadows between buildings. Nothing that was too suspicious, but suspicious enough for Sonny to take notice. He tapped the comm behind his ear and spoke, ¡°All good?¡± ¡°Everything is fine,¡± she said in a slightly strained voice, telling Sonny that he was right, ¡°We have some lurkers on the platform, they have been organising the same tools for a while now, and two of them do not look like they belong here¡± ¡°Alright apples, I¡¯ll be there in five¡± ¡°Got it¡± she responded without question. At least now he didn''t need to worry about her being on the ship if trouble stirred up, she would have shifted away now, to the safest place that she could find. Sonny didn''t remember all of their fruity code, but he always remembered the important ones. When close enough to the port, Sonny tapped on the console and said, ¡°You can drop me here, thank you¡± he got out of the glider and was thankful that the port dock he had come in was blocked off to the public, meaning the streets were empty. He put his hands in his pockets and started to walk through the street towards the tunnel to the platform making sure that he was alert to everything around him. It was only after a few moments that a group of three, he imagined the group that had been outside of his yacht just a few moments ago appeared before him through the tunnel that led down to the dock with open space visible behind them, only the tail of his yacht visible through the end of the tunnel with the backdrop of the stars. So they had been watching him the whole time and knew that he was on foot now. He didn''t pick up on anyone watching him though. He analysed the group in front of him, they walked separately, at an odd distance from one another, occasionally glancing from one to the other as though to see what each was going to do next. So, they weren''t familiar with one another, that was telling. A group that had been put together for just this, or rather activated he thought. He had stopped now and allowed them to walk closer, and once they were around ten meters away they staggered to a stop, again waiting to see what the other two would do, reinforcing Sonny¡¯s thoughts that they were not familiar with one another. It looked as though they were taken aback by their target being himself, Sonny Matise, House Head of the Artelis, at least two did, the one on the right looked excited at the prospect of taking out a prominent figure. ¡°Ortu?¡± Sonny said out to them not actually expecting an answer, but the cocky one smiled, allowing him to feel as though he had guessed correctly. He had scars on his face and looked like a brawler. Slightly smaller than Sonny but he had all the trademarks of a man who knew how to handle himself in a fight, wrapped in muscle, thick forearms and the way that he moved. The other two did not match him at all, the one in the middle may have been a dock worker, brawny and tough, he looked like a man built from labour, and he was practically jittery, but he must have been the one who allowed them access to the port. The third was a man who had a cautious look to him, a white-collar worker Sonny thought, potentially in a corporate role within the Lotus somewhere. This was how the Ortu operated, zealots for the old god emperor, they were an organisation shrouded in mystery and secrets to the extent that individual members did not even know the identity of any others. The Houses didn''t even know how they communicated with each other, all they knew was that once they were activated, they would do anything to accomplish their mission and end their own life upon capture. He had a few tassels with them previously, but this was brazen, even for them. Their entire goal was the resurrection of the god emperor, Bel, a ridiculous thing to even think about, and it showed how far their misguided beliefs could take them. They were a dangerous bunch though, often being at the centre of assassinations, terrorist attacks and supply chain attacks, they were a bloody nuisance and unfortunately, spread through every rank and position in the galaxy, not just in places like the Lotus and amongst the Eshara, but though the Houses as well. On a few occasions activated members had turned out to be House Commanders and members of special corps that had been vetted thoroughly for their positions, and then one day, boom, they take out a high-ranking official, or minister somewhere and end themselves. It was suspected that they may even have their claws on a House Head because of the intel they seemed to receive. Though nobody could be sure of that. Why here though? Why would they attack himself, it didn''t make much sense, he was already hamstrung by the Autarch if it had anything to do with Yeley, and if the attack was against the Lotus why attack Sonny, surely he was a target that would be too big of a risk? He watched the brawny one pull something from behind his back and hold it in front of him, pushing some buttons on it, while the brawler looked at him and started to step forward. Just then Sonny heard three shots and reflexively pushed his energy strengthening the barrier that he had around him and felt the bullets hit the barrier, they stopped dead about a meter and a half away from hitting his back, their momentum completely dissipating. A fourth shooter? No, it was Mr. white collar, he thought, he must have set up a turret, or have remotely pulled the trigger with some tech. He couldn''t dwell on that though as the brawler had quickly closed the gap between them and was rushing him with a knife in hand, he thrust it up from a low position up to Sonny¡¯s chest, but he allowed his barrier to slow him down making the man look like he was moving through water at first, and then as though he was being stuck in place, he swung the bullets that had been shot at him around his barrier, making them orbit his body at an incredible speed and then slammed into the brawler. The time dilation that the brawler would have felt would have made it impossible for him to react in time and blood sprayed in a delayed and slow manner from his body as the bullets tore through him as though in slow motion. Sonny brought his fist down and the ground beneath him shattered as though hit by a meteorite as the brawler was slammed into the ground under the immense weight of Sonny¡¯s gravity, the sound reverberated through the tunnel as a massive crack! He then stretched out his arm toward the white collar man and pulled him from his feet drawing him in within a moment until he was held in Sonny¡¯s grip by his neck as he felt three more bullets hit his barrier. The white-collar man struggled in Sonny¡¯s grip as his legs flailed unable to reach the ground above the corpse of the brawler. Sonny looked at the dock worker and saw that he watched him intently, the small device still in his hands, and Sonny now understood, that it was a bomb. Typical fucking Ortu, he thought. ¡°He will¡­rise¡± struggled the white-collar worker and Sonny thought against merely snapping his neck at the stupidity of the statement. He let go of the white collar and allowed his ability to hold him in that position, pressure still on his throat and his legs and arms held spread out so that he wouldn''t be able to kill himself before being interrogated. He then allowed his gravity to push against him as he flung towards the dock worker with the bomb, but the man didn''t react, he had closed his eyes and it seemed as though he was praying, not doing anything with the bomb in his hands. ¡°Shit,¡± he said to himself, it was a fucking dead man switch! He stopped himself mid-air and thrust his right hand out to the man, with no intention of ever touching him. The flow of gravity was incredible and too much for this purpose but the bomb had caused Sonny to panic. The familiar crack from the initial push on the air molecules, then the roar of air displacement as the man was flung backwards, his body already disintegrating from the sheer force of the thrust, then came the screech of sound as the air compressed desperate to escape, the familiar blue glow that came from this mixed with the spacial distortion of Sonny¡¯s thrust, the tunnel bowed inwards and then cracked, and places shattered around him as the gravitational shift ruptured the tunnel around it. Sonny watched the man be pulled apart by his attack, atom by atom and then the bomb exploded, but Sonny had added too much force into his thrust and the blast accelerated, compressing the blast transitioning it into a plasma state, the flash of light so was intense that Sonny covered his eyes as the scream of his gravity continued to wail through the tunnel, not quite reaching supersonic levels yet, the temperature rose incredibly. The man¡¯s remnants and the plasma from the bomb shot out of the tunnel into open space like a bullet from a barrel destroying the tunnel around it and the surrounding walls as it accelerated through. It tore through the ship, and Sonny strained trying to keep up the barrier between himself and the thrust, glad for his training which ensured that he always protected himself against any unwanted side effects. He had placed himself and the white collar in a bubble keeping them out of the blast and the consequent effects. Sonny fought to keep his bubble from being pulled into the vacuum that he had just created within the tunnel that was losing its structural integrity, as the cracks spread from the end of the tunnel that was no longer existent into the section where he stood. He felt the bubbles edge warp under the strain of the vacuum. He took in a deep breath as the chaos before him settled, leaving the remnants of the tunnel and the ship walls smouldering with the heat of the plasma. He moved himself back with his gravity to the white-collar man and looked at him. He placed his hands on his hips, raised his head up with eyes closed and exhaled, ¡°Fuck sake,¡± he said into the air. The man had a bullet hole in his forehead, the blood trickled down his face. He had taken the opportunity to end himself when Sonny launched his attack by using the same method he had used to attack Sonny in the first place. What a stupid oversight. He was planning on interrogating him, and because he didn''t think for a moment, he now was holding up a corpse in his ability. He released him but didn''t let the body fall to the ground, he lowered it to the ground. He knew that they never got anything from examining the bodies of the Ortu, they were too careful for that. The brawler was broken, Sonny had pushed a bit too hard with that as well. He would leave this attack with absolutely nothing now. His comm went off and he heard the voice of Cotton come through, in a panic ¡°Sonny, was that you, are you okay?¡± Sonny took another breath before answering looking down the tunnel back into the city that was now dark. His attack had caused an EMP to go off, killing the power to this section of the ship. He turned and looked down to where he had made his thrust as the dock worker. It was a gaping hold in the ship, metal was stretched and torn from his attack, and he could see that the dock where his yacht sat just minutes ago was no longer there. ¡°Yeah, I¡¯m good, I¡¯m going to need a lift¡± Chapter 9: Gilded Cage Meno, Angie and Paba awkwardly stood staring at the three in front of them, the old man, Harold held out his hand with his broad smile beaming on his face. Meno thought that he looked familiar somehow, though, he also looked like a rather happy frog. His wispy hair and laugh lines made him look somewhat confused with what he was looking at as though not expecting it to be the three in front of him. Angie bumped Meno with her elbow in his back and whispered, ¡°The coin¡± Meno jerked and pulled the necklace from under his shirt and walked over to the old man, awkwardly handing it over with both hands and then bowing, still with his arms outstretched and quickly made his way back, suddenly wondering if Worrec had told him to hand the coin over or not. Had he just made a mistake there without thinking? ¡°Not smooth¡± whispered Paba not taking her eyes off the people in front of them. ¡°Ah,¡± said Harold holding the coin up and looking at it carefully, flipping it around in his hand, ¡°Yes, all in order it seems. You are welcome here, and will be safe,¡± he said, each word seeming to be dragged out by him. There was a calmness to him like nothing was happening outside of this moment that needed any attention at all. ¡°Thank you so much,¡± Meno said, again bowing, ¡°Now¡­¡± he said looking at each of them, ¡°Who are you?¡± the question floored them, but the old man just gave a curious look to each of them, he clearly meant the question, they had just not expected it. ¡°Ah,¡± each one of them said in some way, Meno started, ¡°Worrec sent us, he said to meet with you¡± ¡°Worrec, okay¡± he said contemplatively, Meno could almost feel the panic rising in Angie now, and he could tell that Paba was thinking what he was, ¡®Damn you, Worrec¡¯. ¡°Well,¡± he said abruptly, gently clapping his hands together once, ¡°We will take you to the Temple, you are now guests of the Traes. Follow me¡± Meno noticed that the two guards flanking Harold seemed to be enjoying this each with a smirk that they were trying to hide. Now, Meno didn''t know if the old man was messing with them, or if the guard just thought that this was funny because this is what he was like. They followed the man and the two guards to a glider that had a mirror finish that was held just off of the platform, it was a work of art Meno thought, straight long lines only ever curving to sharpen into an arrowhead shape, it looked built for speed, though something that one should enjoy as it moved passed, it must have been at least forty foot long. Angie moved quickly to Meno¡¯s side and whispered aggressively, ¡°He doesn''t know Worrec?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know what¡¯s happening, Angie¡± he said feeling as though this was somehow his fault, though logically knowing that he was just a passenger in this. ¡°This is typical, Worrec shit,¡± Paba muttered to herself, shaking her head side to side, she didn''t bother to whisper, ¡°Pretends like he has a plan and then throws you into hell¡±. They made their way into the very, very comfortable glider that had squishy white seats and full, thick carpets. There didn''t seem to be any windows from the outside, but when they got in Meno could see the outside through tinted windows, it was amazing, and it was cooler than it had been outside. They took their seats in the circular seating and the old man looked between the three of them and said, ¡°What are your names?¡± asked Harold as he took his seat and carefully looked at all of them, still smiling. Each of them just accepted that they would need to answer knowing that this was nothing like they had expected. They answered in turn, he nodded at each and remarked, ¡®What a fun name¡¯ when Paba, unfortunately, delivered hers with a usual level of sassiness. Though Harold didn''t seem to mind, or notice. ¡°Good, good. You perhaps saw the statue of our beautiful Det¡¯em as you entered?¡± he said as a genuine question to which they nodded as it would have been very difficult to miss the mountain-sized statue, ¡°Then I will take you to your apartments, the Planetary head is very busy today, very busy so we will arrange a meeting for you at some point. We will ask that you do not stray far from your apartments for the time being¡± he said abruptly stopping in his sentence, then seeming to realise that he would need to add some more, ¡°We have been informed of you coming here, and you will be under the protection of the Traes, meaning that nobody will know who you are, or what you are doing here, though, I myself do not know that either¡± he said with a beaming smile, as though delivering wonderful news. The three of them again, slipped into anxiety, ¡°The coin must mean something though?¡± Meno said looking pleadingly at the old man and the two guards, who after hearing this, did not seem to be worried at all, ¡°Yes,¡± he said in that long-winded way of his, acting as though this explained everything. ¡°Here we are, below is the city of Det¡¯em, the capital of Yeley¡± Meno looked out the window and felt all of his worries leave him even if just for the briefest of moments. He saw the tall white buildings which in fact did have faded paint on them with bright colours, though it seemed some time since they were last painted. The buildings were tall, with great pillars and facades, the streets were made from stone and it had fountains and statues on almost every corner, the whole city was littered with trees, some climbing the walls of some buildings, others in the centre of streets with stones around them as though protected. Meno saw the people walking with brightly coloured cloth that flapped in the winds, he saw people coming together and laughing, eating and enjoying the warm sun of the day. Other gliders moved around them, some heading in the same direction as them, to the enormous statue of Det¡¯em. Meno looked up at her now as she towered over them, her hands dropping great waterfalls and her face obscured by the lightest of cloud cover, there was a rainbow around her. Below Meno spotted a large group waving deep green flags as they stood before a podium with someone speaking animatedly. The group was cheering and throwing their fists into the air at the words. They seemed somehow in contrast to the rest of the people within the city of Det¡¯em. ¡°Who are they?¡± Meno asked without thinking whether this question would be clever at the moment or not. ¡°Ah,¡± said Harold looking out of the window. Meno noticed that the two guards looks had soured upon seeing the group, ¡°A reform group, led by a man named Grasci¡± he said nodding solemnly, ¡°They are protesting some of the changes that Yeley has needed to make in its agricultural productions¡± he said continuing to nod, as though agreeing with himself. Meno noted that the man did not tell them not to worry about it at all, as he would have expected him to. ¡°We will be enjoying a festival in a few months time, the Suns Rising festival¡± continued Harold sitting back into his seat, ¡°We will be painting the city in celebration of it, as we do every year bringing in the hot season¡±. It was already hotter than Meno had ever experienced, and he was so excited to be in a heat like this, though he had to admit, there was something nice about the cool air that was being moved around the glider''s cabin. ¡°Grasci has said that he will be making a public speech during the festival, it has quite a few people worked up in fact,¡± Meno decided not to press the matter as it seemed to agitate the guards slightly that Harold was even mentioning this to them. They sat in silence for a few moments until Angie said, ¡°Excuse me, um, Harold, but you said that we will be staying in the Temple, under the protection of the Traes family¡± he nodded though his eyes looked at the ceiling as though trying to recall whether or not he had said this, ¡°Yes, yes,¡± he said as though pulling on a long-lost memory, ¡°Is that usual for guests of the Traes?¡± ¡°Oh, no, not at all,¡± he said, beaming his smile again. Meno noticed the guards trying to hold back smiles again, the woman seemed to be more practised at this than the male guard. Meno looked at them with a questioning look, she merely shook her head side to side, and then nodded in a way to say, ¡®It¡¯s fine dont worry¡¯, but this was maddening. Angie seemed to be going through the same existential crisis with the lack of real answers, and the purposefully vague answers, that while comforting to hear that they would be looked after, offered no real path or reason for it. They sat in silence for the rest of the short trip, Paba who hadn''t said anything seemed to be having a conversation with herself in her head as she was infrequently moving her mouth but not saying anything, and shaking her head from side to side with the occasional face being pulled, this did life Meno¡¯s spirits a bit. He thought that she was almost, perfectly odd. ¡°This place is amazing,¡± Meno said looking out of the window on Angie''s side, knowing that she was transfixed too, she nodded and exhaled through her nose, seeming to need to accept its beauty despite the frustration she currently felt with Harold. Below them they came to a massive circular courtyard outside the steps of the temple, bustling with people left and right. Stalls were set up on the outskirts of the plaza, and the same brightly coloured cloth was used as awnings to protect them from the heat. ¡°The Agora¡± said Harold looking down at it with a loving smile, seeing all of the people moving in and out, some pointing up at the ship as it came to rest at the temple steps behind some guards at the entrance to the temple. Meno couldn''t wait to get outside and experience the city and look up at the magnificent temple and the statue of Det¡¯em that was currently blocked from their view. ¡°Not just yet,¡± said Harold holding his hand up, and the ship began to spin slowly, and then lower into the ground, Meno looked outside the window and saw that they were on a platform that was taking them below the floor, the people of the Agora still watching them and pointing at the ship. He realised now that the people could not see them, as the ship had a mirror finish on the outside of it. ¡°We need to protect you, that means even from our people as well,¡± said the old man contemplatively. ¡°We have gone to some lengths to ensure that you will not be seen¡± ¡°So that¡¯s why we are being afforded the luxury of staying within the temple¡± Angie said to which she received a knowing nod from Harold, the most lucid thing he had done so far. The ship continued to fall into the ground until they were lowered into a large chamber, with a number of ships below it and a small crew that seemed to man the hanger. It was only once they had come to a full stop that Harold gently tapped his hands together again and told them that they could now depart. Meno was slightly dampened by the fact that he couldn''t explore the Agora, but was still interested in walking through the hanger and looked around, seeing enormous stone walls and more gliders that looked like the one that they had just come out of, the hanger had a taller ceiling than Meno would have imagined and thought that it must have meant that the temple they were just in front of must have been raised. The walls were the same stone, though these now kept multiple consoles and holograms with people working on the ships and seeming to be looking at designs. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. He was quickly hurried by the female guard as the rest started walking away, and they made their way to some lifts that held all of them very comfortably. Meno had an embarrassing moment where his legs wobbled and his arms sprayed out as they started to move upwards, Angie grabbed him by the shoulder and squeezed to let him know that this was normal, but he could feel that she was still on edge through the intensity. He did see that he received another smirk from the guards, and no reaction at all from Harold, who seemed to be humming and then trying to figure out where the noise was coming from. Paba had seemingly lost the ability to care about anything happening around her. Once the lift stopped, which Meno had a more controlled, though not completely elegant jolt, they found themselves entering a large corridor with a grand concourse, a vast circular room that must have been fifteen meters in diameter with a corridor leading out on each side, the opposite side to the lifts was open to the sky and the city and Meno saw that they must have travelled up some thirty meters or so because he was now seeing the tops of the buildings below them, and the great hands of the statue that the temple was part of stretching just above them, the water misting from her hands, again the rainbow in view. The circular room was filled with chairs and tables arranged for personal meetings and the opposite side had light cloth hanging over the openings to the world outside, the wind gently blowing in, ¡°What happens when it rains?¡± Meno said, not realising he said it aloud, ¡°Oh, it only rains around the temple when required, otherwise we control the weather quite well,¡± said Harold who had started to walk off to the left. Meno noticed as he walked that the walls had strange writing and lights that glowed gently and wrapped around the ceiling, it gave a serene look but it was not giving off enough light to be of any use during nighttime. As they continued down the corridor he saw the same lining the walls, both Angie and Paba seemed to have noticed this too, Paba staring and Angie only allowing her eyes to flicker to them, perhaps not wanting to be seen as inspecting it. Harold led them down the corridor until he came to a large wooden door which he allowed one of the guards to open, and Meno was once again, left in utter shock at the place. It was a room with an opening to the world on the outside, seeing the beautiful blue skies and the white stone city below them, the same cloth lightly blowing in the wind hanging from the open windows. Inside, there was a large wooden table with benches and wingback chairs at the ends, an enormous sofa and a carpet that lay below it. On the far right there was an open kitchen with an island made of stone topped with a rich redwood, and opposite was a built-in area with some stools that was set next to one of the great windows allowing the cool breeze to drift in. ¡°These are your apartments,¡± said Harold, his smile larger now than before, ¡°This space sleeps five so you should be more than comfortable here, each room has its own bathroom as well. You are welcome to the food and anything that you would like in here, we will be sending clothing through to you later today, as we have your sizes now¡± he said looking around. Angie and Paba walked into the room, both stupified like Meno, ¡°Um, thank you,¡± said Angie in disbelief, which was followed by a vigorous nod from Paba at Harold who bowed to them, and left the room with his two guards. The door closed and none of them said anything for a long time. ¡°This is¡­¡± Meno started, ¡°What the hell is going on?!¡± Paba said throwing her hands around to her side pleading for some reason. ¡°I need a drink¡± said Angie who moved over to what Meno now recognised must have been a bar. He dropped himself onto one of the sofas and felt himself sink in, he released a breath that he didn''t know he was holding at the absolute comfort of it as he fell through the cushions. Angie seemed to have downed a glass of something already and after pulling a face looked at Paba and said, ¡°Did you see the wards?¡± she said through a pulled face, ¡°Oh yeah¡± said Paba wide-eyed, ¡°They have some serious security around here, this is old school, but nothing gets through this stuff¡± she said pointing at the glowing lights that lined the ceiling of the room which Meno had noticed now for the first time. ¡°How are we all feeling?¡± Angie said looking between them with seriousness in her eyes. Paba just shrugged and looked around. Meno hadn¡¯t really considered that, but it seemed that Angie was already nodding, agreeing with Paba¡¯s response of not knowing. ¡°This place¡­¡± Angie took a moment, ¡°Are we really safe here?¡± Paba just started laughing, and Meno just watched them with a smile on his face, not having the capacity to deal with what was happening to them, but being more than comfortable in watching his friends breathe an air of relief for the first time since meeting them. ¡°Pour for all of us Angie, and keep ¡®em coming¡± Paba roared and laughed again. * Olivia had been waiting the entire day for the meeting that she was currently en route to. She had barely been able to contain herself as she showed great patience, she believed. Of course, she had not wasted her day, she attended her duties, made sure that she was prepared for her lessons with Harold the next day, went to the school to make sure that a Traes was representing the family during the awards ceremony, thanked the guards personally for their efforts during the last riots even though there had not been much for them to do, but it was of course, proper to do so, and then had completed her own studies. She had done everything that she had needed to that day so she felt that it was only right that she was now properly rewarded with information about Harold''s new guests that had arrived in the temple earlier that day. It was all that she wanted to do when Harold had told her that morning that mysterious people were coming, and now, finally, she was heading to her parent''s office on the top floor of the temple to find out all about them. She was practically giddy. It was so rare for them to have guests, and even when they did, they were dignitaries coming to speak with her parents, to be wined and dined. This was different, this was something new. Harold had told her that it was someone around her age, someone, that would be coming without the requirements of her being ¡®Lady Olivia of the Traes¡¯ the diplomatic daughter of the Traes family. ¡°Slow down, lady Olivia¡± ¡°You keep up, Efreet,¡± she said with little patience. He had been there with them and yet he refused to tell her anything about them. She was sour with him and his duties. They had spent enough time together now that when a rule needed to be broken he should do it and tell her everything, but he didn''t, saying that it was not right. She saw the old man at the end of the corridor standing with his private guard Shilu Salfor smiling at her. She had been there too, but Olivia couldn''t blame her yet, she hadn''t seen her yet today. The guard had her usual cheerful demeanour and Harold smiled at her as she arrived at a frightening pace. ¡°Lady Olivia,¡± he said with his hands wide open, she took them and looked down deep into his eyes, ¡°Tell me everything¡± Shilu looked up at Efreet and laughed, ¡°I was told not to tell her anything¡± Efreet said in defence, ¡°Nobody actually expected you to keep quiet about it,¡± she said continuing to laugh at him. ¡°Everything¡± Olivia said looking at the old man seriously now who chuckled to himself. ¡°When we are inside I will tell you everything that I know¡± She sighed heavily at him, but accepted it, she was lucky to be part of this meeting anyway she thought. It was only because of Harold that she was in the first place, if it were up to her parents she wouldn''t be allowed in at all, she knew. The doors opened and her father stood, tall, with thick blonde hair that he wore brushed backwards. He was much taller than her, and his face softened as he saw her, she stood composed and as the daughter of the Planet Head should, and with much control said, ¡°I am ready for the meeting Father¡± bowing her head down slightly. ¡°Yes, I heard so, all that composure, the whole time¡± he said with a smile clearly having heard her attempts at interrogation with Harold, ¡°Come on in¡± he said holding the doors open. She noted that he looked at her with a worried expression, though she knew he had been under stress recently with the regulation changes and the riots happening in Det¡¯em, this was somehow different. Perhaps he was worried about her being in the meeting, but she brushed this aside, she was here now, and that¡¯s what mattered. They made their way into the apartments and sat at the large rectangular table on her parent''s patio, half covered by a ceiling and the rest open to the skies which had now darkened, she could hear the waterfalls of Det¡¯em¡¯s arms below them. She said hello to her mother who walked into the room and came and gave her a kiss on the cheek as she sat down, her warm loving face soft as she was. Her father still stood as the guards moved and stood to the side of the room dutifully. Harold took his time, to sit down, pretending to be feeble as always. ¡°So?¡± she said immediately chastising herself for losing her patience. Her mother smiled at her, the same smile that betrayed the same worry from her father. ¡°Alright, Harold, your meeting, tell us why we are housing these strays,¡± said her father not unkindly, but the way a man whose home had been used for guests that he did not invite should ask. Harold rummaged around in his robes and pulled out what looked like a coin on a band of leather. Liv stopped herself from asking and exhibited patience she was not known for. ¡°They came in with this¡± he said holding it out to the rest to see, ¡°It is a traveller''s pass if you will, a very old way of telling the intended that the people carrying it can be trusted, and should be taken care of. It is never given lightly, and in all my time, this is the first time I have ever seen it actually used. It is also not something that many know of as a means of entry¡± he said clearly, making sure to add the last point, as that was going to be Olivia¡¯s first question. ¡°You say not many¡± said her father finally moving over to a chair and pouring himself a glass of wine. Her mother Eher, held her hand out to take it from Harold and examined it. ¡°A very small group¡± he said inferring more than he was saying, his eyes lingering on the coin. Liv¡¯s mother and father obviously understood and trusted this as they nodded passing a look between each other, but Olivia didn''t know what that meant. She, however, did not press this, perhaps the act of understanding would allow her parents to think that she understood more than she did. ¡°It¡¯s an old Hulfean coin, ancient¡± said her mother looking closely at the coin in her palm, ¡°Yes, very rare nowadays. It must be this coin, any other and you would know that it was a counterfeit. It proves that they are indeed in need of our protection¡± ¡°Who are they?¡± her mother said as her father took another sip of his wine watching his wife work the coin in her dainty fingers. ¡°One is named Paba Rebapa, which I think is just a fantastic name,¡± he said with all seriousness, ¡°She was a researcher within the core, at the Manin University on Seviv, she studied Neurodynamic programming as well as Cognitive Computing Architecture with a specialisation in Synaptic Network Arrays where she seems to have suddenly needed to leave¡± ¡°Clever girl,¡± said her father, Olivia didn''t even know what any of that meant. ¡°Yes, she seems to be casting herself as a pilot currently. She was the one that brought the others here¡± ¡°Others, this morning you said there were only two?¡± Liv blurted, ¡°Yes, yes,¡± said Harold, ¡°It seems we have another that was picked up at the last moment, but word was sent through before they arrived. Captain Angela Lawrence, served in the last war on many fronts, part of the Hulfean forces and at one stage served under Guy Reyes in the 37th Battalion. They had nearly been deployed onto Porvec if our information is correct¡± Liv recognised the name of the planet, it had been rendered uninhabitable after the war, ¡°A fine soldier from all accounts. She was then placed on a classified mission that we have no visibility on, which now we know was the small moon of Gol. It seems that she had been there for some twenty-two years¡± This character seemed to make her parents slightly more nervous, ¡°I do not worry about her¡± said Harold, as he noticed their expressions too. ¡°Very well¡± Pac Traes said accepting Harold¡¯s lack of concern, though, cautiously, ¡°And the last one?¡± ¡°His name is Meno, a delightful young man, though we have very little information about him, he does not belong in any system, no record of birth nor ID. He simply doesn''t exist, which leads me to believe that he was the subject of whatever was happening on Gol¡± ¡°And you believe that we should be okay with someone that we have no information about at all under our roof?¡± said her mother sceptically, though looking for Harold¡¯s opinion. ¡°He had the coin,¡± said Harold, ¡°And that does mean something,¡± he said knowingly. To Liv¡¯s amazement, her mother didn''t argue this point but Liv did notice that she was still uncertain, passing a look to her husband. After a few moments of silence, Liv asked energetically, ¡°What were they like?¡± Shilu chortled at this, and then spoke up in explanation from the side of the room with her hands still behind her back, ¡°Harold put them through the ringer a bit with his¡­senile act¡± Harold chuckled at this as he looked at his guard, ¡°Always good to see what people will do and say when they think the person in front of them is not quite there. They seemed very nice Lady Olivia, Paba a bit spiky but all of them seem to be genuine people who are a bit shaken up, which is completely understandable¡± Liv smiled at this, she couldn''t wait to meet them. ¡°So what do we do with them?¡± Eher Traes asked, placing the coin on the table. ¡°We have given them food, clothing a place to sleep so far, until we have word, we should treat them as guests,¡± Harold said cautiously, he seemed to know that this was not a concrete answer. ¡°And when do you expect to get word?¡± said her father, ¡°This is not a hotel, Harold¡± The old man shrugged at this, realising that he was not giving enough. Pac Traes scratched his forehead with his index finger, a sign of irritation Liv knew, being on the receiving side of it a number of times before. ¡°My concern is that we still know nothing about these people, Harold¡± started her mother, adding some calm to her husband''s demeanour, ¡°We have a woman posing as something she isn''t, a soldier and a ghost in our temple. I¡¯m sure that you can understand this is a bit precarious. We spend considerable efforts on keeping the walls safe, as you know,¡± ¡°Of course, Lady Eher¡± Harold said lowering his head, ¡°I merely ask that we give this some time to play out under a watchful eye. Whoever sent them, did so with purpose¡± Her father shared a deep look with his advisor, and then said heavily, ¡°I see Grasci¡¯s crowd is growing¡± The words were almost telling, said in a much deeper way than Liv had heard her father speak of the subject before. She knew that the group that followed Grasci, the Yelean Reform was growing in stature and that they were causing some political tensions, especially among some of the regional heads and of course amongst their client planets, but this level of concern was new. Had she perhaps been kept out of the loop on their growth? ¡°Yes, we flew over the gathering today. His numbers are growing¡± Liv looked from Harold to her father only to see that he was already looking at her, though not smiling, as though he was realising something and he was trying to work out how to stop it. It disconcerted her, she suddenly felt as though she had been sheltered far more than she realised when it came to Graci¡¯s movement. She knew about the riots, and that it was Yelean Reform behind that, but that was all it had been, it had just been riots, they had riots previously. Why was this weighing so heavily on her father now? She felt as though she had been blind to something somehow. ¡°I think we should watch them for a few days before we start to engage. As Eher said, we don¡¯t know anything about them yet, caution would serve us well here¡± said her father, ¡°Surely you would want to know their true nature as fast as possible, father? We wouldn''t want them under our roof with time if they can¡¯t be trusted would we?¡± he gave the usual exasperated look when his beloved daughter wanted to get her way, ¡°I¡¯m sure with the accompaniment of Harold, Shilu and Efreet we could determine who they really are rather quickly, and I would be protected while doing so¡± she said in her most composed and diplomatic tone. Harold chuckled and then winked at her. Her father looked mortified. He also knew that she would sneak out and meet with them anyway even if he said no. he breathed out a sigh. ¡°Fine, as representative of the Traes in this matter, you may meet them under the condition that all of them¡± he said pointing at the two guards and Harold, ¡°Are with you, and no other time, understood?¡± Olivia stood up from the table immediately and looked at Harold, ¡°I think we have kept our guests waiting long enough then, dont you?¡± Chapter 10: Olivia Traes ¡°I¡¯m telling you!¡± said Angie stretching across the table nearly knocking her glass of wine over as she slurred through her story, ¡°The whole planet is on fire, okay, Pillars everywhere, the whole thing is a bloody disaster, and there he stands as bold as brass,¡± she stood with her arm outstretched as though holding a sword pointing towards an unseen enemy. Meno and Paba were wrapped in hysterical anticipation, ¡°and he says¡­he says, For Locne!¡± she roared with her eyes closed, ¡°And then what?!¡± squealed Paba, unable to contain her excitement, ¡°Then he smashes down on the detonator!¡± she said throwing her hand into the air, ¡°And the building behind us explodes!¡± the room erupted, and Paba fell straight off of her chair, struggling to breathe through the laughter, Meno had tears running down his cheeks and Angie was banging her fist on the table reaching with laughter. Eventually, Paba made her way shakily back to her seat trying to regulate her breathing, ¡°That was him, that was Lor Dimitri, the bravest man I knew, always had a plan, and each was worse than the one before it¡±. Angie had been telling them stories from her days during the war when she was a lieutenant in the service of the army of Locne, the fabled ancient King''s forces. Meno had only found out earlier that evening that she had only received a promotion after the war, to Captain. The three of them had got into the booze behind the bar counter shortly after Harold had left the apartment, he had sent some food up from the street soon after he left, and Meno had naturally been beyond words at this, there had been meats cooked on sticks, fruits and vegetables of all shaped and colours, he didn''t think that food could taste this good, that such textures had existed. It had even been better than the food that he had eaten on the ship on their way to Yeley. He had been told by both Paba and Angie to slow down, as he wanted to taste everything at once. They had been sitting at the finely polished wooden table for some hours now, and as the drinks began to flow, so did the conversation, ¡°Did you ever meet him, King Locne?¡± said Meno after they had caught their breath again, Paba snorted, ¡°He¡¯s not real, Meno, he¡¯s like a legend that they follow, like an¡­idol, a symbol,¡± she said hiccoughing. ¡°No, I never met him, but he¡¯s real,¡± she said pointedly at Paba, who shrugged it off. Meno closed one eye to focus on her, ¡°Maybe once upon a time¡± said Paba pouring herself another drink, ¡°His story goes back thousands of years, he started the Hulfean House, that¡¯s too far back, even age extending¡­¡± she paused to hiccough again and then continued as nothing happened, ¡°Doesn''t get you that far¡±, ¡°I don¡¯t know,¡± Angie replied with a smile seeming to decide that the old-aged question of whether Locne was real or not should be debated tonight, ¡°The highest ranking person I met was Commander Godrey Reyes, he always seemed that he was running the show, but even he would say that we do it for Locne¡± ¡°See?¡± Paba said to Meno waving her glass around the table, as though Angie not arguing gave her victory ¡°For Locne, the symbol,¡± Just then there was a strong knock on the door, they all stopped and looked at each other, their eyes large and terrified. Paba straightened up and shook her head side to side, nearly falling over as she did so, Angie placed the bottle down and Meno walked to the door not really noticing the other''s adverse reactions. He opened it only so that a crack of light from the other side was let through, ¡°Hello?¡± ¡°Ah, Meno you have a guest¡± said Harold peering through the door. Meno saw that he was accompanied by two guards and a woman, though he couldn''t really see them and so closed his right eye again to focus, ¡°May we come in?¡± Harold said now smiling broadly. Meno swung the door open realising that he was being rude and nearly came off his feet. ¡°Please welcome to our home¡­your home¡­the home¡± Meno just closed his eyes in embarrassment, in a strange bow. He had never drank before, and now suddenly felt very conscious of everything he was doing, with no real control of how to change it. He could hear Harold, the guard, and the woman snigger at him, and his eyes tightened even more. ¡°May I introduce, Lady Olivia Traes?¡± Harold said to the room. Meno opened his eyes and took her in, she was younger than he had first thought, in her late teens if not early twenties, she was tall, slim and held herself very elegantly, though there was a sense of mischief in her eyes as she looked at them. They were grey, and they stood out on her tan skin and dark hair that hung loosely, though somehow styled in a way to look as though there was nothing done to it. She took them all in with great interest. Behind her stood the guard that had been with Harold when they were brought to the apartments. ¡°Lady Olivia¡± Angie said bowing, Meno noticed that he hadn''t stopped bowing and therefore stayed in the same position, Paba seemed only to bow because the other two were, nervously reacting. ¡°I have been very eager to meet you all,¡± she said brightly, ¡°We thank you for your hospitality,¡± responded Angie again, showing more control than Meno would have thought she was capable of after drinking, he imagined that she was better at this than he was, as his head was now swimming at dropping it to bow. Angie subtly wagged her hand at Meno telling him not to bow anymore, he rocketed up and saw that unfortunately, lady Olivia had seen this. ¡°I apologise, we should have let you know that we were coming, I see that you have, uh, had the chance to unwind after your long journey¡± said the old man, looking at the bottles that lay strewn across the table. Angie started to speak in explanation but Harold held up his hand and smiled that big smile again, ¡°It is our fault, as Lady Olivia said, she was very eager to meet you and bid you welcome¡± ¡°Yes, we are very happy that you are here,¡± she said smiling, ¡°I would to invite the three of you to join me tomorrow as I will be going into the city,¡± It seemed that this had not been discussed prior and the two guards looked to Harold nervously, though he merely shook his head. Meno could see that Angie was taken by this and that Paba immediately looked to Angie as well for an answer. ¡°That would be amazing, Lady,¡± said Meno who got an excited look from Olivia, but noticed that Paba¡¯s eyes went wide and Angie dropped her head, but he didn''t know what was wrong, ¡°We have spoken about the city, we looked at it,¡± he slurred without thinking, ¡°Fantastic, I have some duties tomorrow in the city, and I thought it would be an excellent excuse to show you our beautiful Det¡¯em,¡± she said, Meno noticed that the guard behind her looked as though something awful had just happened, and saw that Harold was now chuckling, ¡°Ah, that¡¯s the best, we had some of the food today and it was amazing, but we haven''t been into the city, we just flew over it, it looks amazing, and the fields, and all that green and the mountains, and if we can see all of that, with the statue and the tree¡¯s and some of the food, we had some today but¡­¡± he stopped thinking he may have already said that. He once again felt very conscious of himself. ¡°Please forgive him, it¡¯s his first time drinking,¡± said Angie who passed a stern look at Meno, who shrank under her gaze. ¡°My Lady I dont think that this is the best idea¡± said the male guard leaning towards her, ¡°Well I think it¡¯s a fabulous idea, and I will show you whatever you would like¡± she said looking at Meno, ¡°Tomorrow then¡± she said with a little jump and then turned to leave the room. Harold kept looking at them, he waited a few moments before addressing them and once Lady Olivia was through the door, he stated, ¡°There will be guards, of course, please do not be alarmed when they arrive in the morning. She¡¯s very used to getting her way, and very good at getting it¡± he said almost proudly, in response to Angie¡¯s puzzled expression. He looked at the three of them, Meno only now realising that he was not as stable as he thought he was, ¡°Get a good night''s sleep¡± he finished with a wink and too left the room. ¡°What¡­the fuck is happening,¡± Angie said, the booze seeming to catch up and the situation cursing her head to spin even more. Meno didn''t blame her, ¡°Honestly, I don¡¯t understand this place but, he¡¯s right, we should head to bed¡± Paba nodded, and turned to Meno, ¡°You shouldn''t answer for other people, you know¡± she admonished swaying, ¡°What if I didn''t want to go?¡± * The next morning, after being woken up by Angie, very much the same way Mr. Dimitri would have woken him, with a shout through his bedroom door, Meno ran through their apartment trying to get ready, his head spinning and his stomach feeling on the brink of being sick, the light was so¡­ potent. He had looked over to Paba once in the living space who seemed to feel the same way. She was clutching a large glass bottle of water like her life depended on it. They were greeted at the door by five guards, one of them, the guard that had been in the room last night, as well as Lady Olivia, who was kept behind the exo-suited entourage. It seemed as though she had compromised on this, as she didn''t look happy about it, but complied, giving him a small wave as he poked his head around the guards to look at her. They made their way to a glider in the basement once more and then flew through the city. Meno took in the city once more in all of its splendour, though it looked different to him in his current state. The stalls were being erected and the people were bustling through the streets already, all seeming to be in varying degrees of rush. Olivia had been speaking the entire trip, and though her company were not necessarily in a position to hold a conversation, they tried their best. Meno was honestly struggling to keep up with it. ¡®So where are you all from?¡¯ ¡®Why have you come?¡¯ ¡®Will you be here long?¡¯ They had tried to answer as vaguely as possible, well, Angie had, not to say that Meno didn''t try but Angie had pushed her elbow into him every time he tried to speak clearly worried that he would spill too much. She managed well and seemed to give just enough to get to the next question. Olivia had accepted this, but Meno could also see that she was not getting all of the information that she would have wanted. She was rather interesting thought Meno, and he struggled to pull his eyes away from her, she was, after all, the first person he had met around his own age, and she was to Meno, quite beautiful. She had an energy about her that was infectious, a curiosity for everything about them and a wealth of knowledge about the city pointing out statues of her grandparents that they passed and telling stories of how they managed Yeley and what they were like. All in all the Traes family, while clearly very powerful, seemed good people, they cared about what happened on their planet, a planet which was dedicated to feeding not just themselves, but the other planets within the region as well. She spoke of committees that had been put together for the farmers so that they may have a voice, and interventions by the family when those committees were turned into figureheads, ¡°Some of the ministers try and turn them into big black holes of complaints with no end dates to when decisions get made and it just gets stuck in the process, that¡¯s when my mother and father get involved and veto certain things¡± It seemed as though the Traes had a close connection to their people, far more than what Meno would have expected considering everything he had learned about powerful people while he was on Gol. Swan had always shown a distaste for people like the Traes, stating that their sole goal was to remain in power, and whatever needed to be sacrificed in order to achieve that, would be sacrificed. He would continue to ramble about how their sacrifices would usually include people''s freedoms and free thought. Meno usually tuned this out, not wanting to rest in the negative, but he thought he had understood the principle of it. He had always wondered why people like that didn''t just do a good job, surely that would secure them in their power anyway? That seemed to be what the Traes did, and from what he could see, they had been in power for generations now. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. ¡°Here we are,¡± said Olivia, again with a little jump as she sat in the glider. Meno looked outside and saw that they were at a larger building than the ones around it, with tall pillars reaching some twenty meters holding up a great triangular roof, and steps rising to enter the building. ¡°I thought we would start with something fun,¡± she said eagerly as she made her way out. ¡°Oh no,¡± said Paba, still clutching onto a water bottle as she looked outside, it seemed that Angie agreed with the sentiment. ¡°Kids¡­¡±. Meno looked out of the window and saw that the stairs in front of the building were being flooded with tiny bodies, all screaming and shouting and rushing the glider. ¡°Kids dont like you either?¡± Angie said nervously, as Olivia and the guards started to make their way out of the glider. ¡°They love me, I look like them, it¡¯s me, I dont like them, they spew stuff¡± Paba said, still with eyes fixed on the screaming children, ¡°And my head Angie¡± she pleaded. ¡°Come on!¡± Meno said rising, in an effort to start feeling better after the car ride which brought questioning looks from Paba and Angie, he now suddenly felt rather excited. He had never really seen children, as he was the only one that he had ever known, so in fact, he had never met one, really. They made their way through the chaos, the children gathering around Olivia as she made her way up the steps, a tiny child in her arms as she spoke to one of the matrons of the building. They were greeted by a library with books reaching to the ceiling, the room was comfortable and well-lit with bright skylights in the massive ceiling. Bright colours were thrown through the beautiful hall. There were soft couches all around and small toys that Meno was fascinated with. Hellen had tried to make him toys when he was a kid, using old shirts and trousers to sow together little figures that Meno had played with, and Mr. Dimitri had on occasion brought Meno a well-shaped stick, which he would wave and fling about under the careful direction of his old Mentor. He allowed himself to get lost in thought for a moment, thinking of them for the first time since landing. He knew, through the timeline that Paba had given him that Mr. Dimitri would surely have fallen now, but he didn''t want to let his mind wander to that point just yet. ¡°Bit on the nose, dont you think?¡± said Angie leaning over to Meno as they stood on the far side by a bookcase as Olivia stood in front of the children asking them questions, laughing and cheering when they answered, ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Bringing us to see this, her with all of the children. Trying to prove that they are good people¡± ¡°That¡¯s what I was thinking,¡± said Paba, who had gripped her water bottle for dear life as the children had swarmed them as they entered the building, ¡°Like, we get it, you¡¯re a good person, you don¡¯t need to prove it,¡± she said sourly. Meno chortled at this and continued to watch Olivia and the children. They were all so happy to see her and all called her by name. After some time, Olivia waved them all over, introduced them to the children by stating their names and then telling the children to say hello which they all did in concert, ¡°Hello friend Meno¡± They had been assured by the guards on the glider that nobody would know who they were and that flight plans for foreign dignitaries had been made to provide them cover. Nobody ever paid them much attention, so it provided a good cover. Eventually, they were each given a book and told to take an individual group to go and read to, Angie looked horrified but took her group, Paba looked terrified but Olivia said, ¡°Just say anything, they will love it¡± ¡°Maybe not anything, Paba,¡± Angie said before being pulled by the children. Olivia walked with Meno to a seat where he was going to also read to some children, ¡°So these are all orphans, eh?¡± he said taking this as a given. ¡°Orphans? No¡± said Olivia looking at him strangely, ¡°No, these children belong to some of the farmers who need daycare services for their kids, they are all too young to be in school so the libraries around here offer daytime care for them. We read to them, let them play around and sometimes take them on tours through the city¡± she said cheerfully and then looked at Meno for a moment seeming to decide to ask the question, ¡°So I take it that you are an orphan?¡± she said tentatively, ¡°I only ask because that¡¯s where you gravitated to¡± ¡°Ah, no, well, yes. I had people that cared for me, but they weren''t my parents, so, yes?¡± he ended it with a question, and he knew that if Angie had heard it he would have received another stern look. It was difficult to keep up with the lie. ¡°They were then¡± she said with a broad smile, ignoring his mishap ¡°I didn''t know my birth parents either, but I am a Traes nonetheless,¡± she said proudly, and Meno for the first time recognised her dark hair and features in comparison to holograms of her parents that he had seen, both had been blonde and fair. ¡°Okay, here we go, read this and then we can move on to the next thing¡± Meno sat and read a story about a great ancient tree that gave shelter to the plants around it during the hot season and protected the smaller plants during the rainy seasons, ensuring that everything was able to grow the way that it should, and the plants thanked the great ancient tree for allowing them to grow, ¡°But then the great ancient tree¡¯s leaves started to fall, and the ancient tree looked to the maple and said, ¡®It is your turn now¡¯ and the maple rose and rose, spreading to make sure that all below it were covered by its arching branches, and when the great tree¡¯s leaves had gone, the maple supported it, taking on the role that would protect the forest below¡± Meno had to admit, he was enjoying the story more than they probably were, and on a few occasions the guard that had been tasked with watching over him had cleared their throat through their mask and Meno realised that he had not been telling the story out loud but had rather just been reading. For some reason, the children seemed to find this very funny. He finished his story and one of the matrons gathered the children and he made his way to the rest, seeing that the guard who was tasked with Paba was reading for her as she sat grumpily in the corner, still clutching her bottle. ¡°She tried to tell them a story herself¡± said Angie who had been closer to Paba than Meno had been, ¡°The Jinn comes at night with a ghost, a giant, a vampire and a hag¡± Angie said mockingly as Paba approached, ¡°And he comes for your soul!¡± she said with a laugh. ¡°They¡¯re soft¡± Paba said brattily, ¡°I was told that story as a kid¡± she mumbled. After leaving the library, cries of goodbye from the children, they made their way further into the city where Olivia met with some stall owners, some merchants, and others, she shook hands and discussed how they were doing, during these meetings, the three were not introduced and kept behind the guards. He spoke to the guards as they made their way through the city, finding out from their perspective about how the city worked, and also, in a slightly more unsavoury line of questioning around the protests that they had seen the day before. It had been brought up the previous night by Angie as she expressed her concerns, though admittedly after a few drinks, about the political tensions that may arise from it. Shilu, Harold''s guard, the tall strong looking woman answered him more than Efreet, who was diligently standing by Lady Olivia during her duties. Meno thought about Harold and imagined that he would have advised this, as they were after all, under protection and they weren''t even meant to be seen when they first came into the city. ¡°The group is becoming more popular, there is no denying that, but we have our eyes on them, so no need to worry yourself about it,¡± she said with a warm smile. Meno naturally found the answer dismissive but received a nod from Angie who was behind Shilu, listening in to the conversation. Perhaps the deflection told them more than they realised. Though it may have not been the rumbling tour through the city that Meno had hoped it to be, as it ended up being just following Olivia around as she did diplomatic duties, but being within the city itself even seemed to turn Paba¡¯s head and she cracked a few smiles. They watched the people moving in and out of alleys, meeting each other and living their lives. It was strange for Meno to see, having never experienced a city before, and often found himself wondering where all of these people were going, and what they did and how they lived. Paba pointed out the giant domed buildings outside of the city, that they believed were trading ports and silos that kept the food before transport. After three stops Olivia suggested food to which Meno nearly jumped and they made their way to a place that Olivia had mentioned was her favorite. It sat on the banks of a river within the city, a large rounded patio that hung over the water, where Meno could see down the river that was lined with beautiful architecture and among the boats that crossed it the fields of the great farms of Yeley in the distance. This truly was a paradise. Meno hung over the patio and looked into the waters of the rivers below, seeing the shimmer of fish as they made their way through the clear blue flow of the river. ¡°So¡± Olivia started as they sat in the empty restaurant, even though it was midday and should have been bustling by all accounts. The restaurant had clearly been emptied on their behalf, and it showed that Olivia had planned to stop here to get to know them better, thought Meno. ¡°I know that you aren''t able to tell me everything, so let me tell you what I do know and then you can add whatever you would like, how does that sound?¡± she said as though proposing a friendly game. Meno was starting to understand what Harold had said the night before, though his memory of it was rather fuzzy but he thought he had said something about her ¡®always getting her way¡¯. He looked to the old man who was doing that thing where he pretended that he didn''t know what was going on around him. Meno figured that he wasn''t nearly as senile as he pretended to be. ¡°You¡­know about us?¡± asked Paba tentatively, ¡°Of course, Harold did his homework on you naturally¡± The old man seemed to be pretending to be preoccupied with one of the boats on the river. ¡°So, Angie, from what I have been told, you were a soldier during the last war, under the Hulfean empire, correct? How did you meet up with these two?¡± she asked energetically not letting Angie answer the question she had originally asked. ¡°Ah¡­¡± Angie started. Yesterday before they started to drink heavily, Angie had prepared them for this and began developing all of them a short backstory that they could use and explain why all of them were together. It now seemed like it was a very good call. ¡°I was sent to a small moon by a private security company, tasked with looking after Meno after his town was attacked, and Paba here was my pilot. We made the decision to leave the moon once we realised that there was nothing for us there, luckily, your man Worrec was able to provide safe passage for us here¡± she finished, a near-perfect recital of what she had said the night before, thought Meno, she didn''t give too much away but plotted a realistic view of why they would all be together. Meno¡¯s backstory was simple, he had a wealthy caregiver who had called for support but unfortunately didn''t make it through the conflict. Angie had said that keeping it as close to the truth was the best way to do this. Somehow though, it didn''t seem that Olivia had bought it as she looked a bit annoyed, and she also did not at all acknowledge the name Worrec when Angie had given it, Harold didn''t react either, though he had heard the name previously. Meno suspected that Olivia was expecting more detail than what was offered. ¡°I see, and you Paba, you are a pilot, yes, but from what we have gathered you studied at Manin University of Seviv, forgive me but I couldnt remember all of the fields that you researched but they seemed to deal with neural computing, correct?¡± Paba froze solid, only her eyes moving eventually to Meno and Angie as they stared at her. ¡°It wasn''t really like I was studying those things, I¡­I was just an assistant to the¡­to¡­¡± ¡°You needed to leave there though, what happened?¡± she said caringly but Meno could tell that she knew she now found a weakness, and she was going to exploit it. Paba was nervous, and Meno could see how uncomfortable she was as she started thumbing the pendent she held around her neck again. ¡°Bad relationship¡± Paba mumbled as she shrank, ¡°He got me into some trouble with the university, so I decided to leave before I got into any more¡± she said now holding the pendant. Meno suspected that all of them knew this was a thinly veiled lie, and was merely being said to end the inquiry. ¡°I¡¯m sorry to hear that,¡± Olivia said with genuine affection, ¡°Are you still in contact with?¡± she allowed the question to sit, it seemed that while she may have felt for Paba, she would risk pressing forward if it meant that she could get more answers out of her. ¡°Hal¡± she said, feeding Olivia what she wanted to hear, ¡°And no, I havent heard from him¡± Meno placed his hand on Paba¡¯s arm and surprisingly she allowed him to. Angie was looking at Olivia strongly, realising herself that this was turning more into an interrogation more than anything else. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Paba, that sounds awful, but we really do hope that you can feel better here¡± she said, seeming to realise how far she had pushed. She looked at Paba with deep care and Meno decided to pull the attention away from Paba, ¡°As Angie said, I was on a small moon, our town came under threat and we contacted Angie¡¯s company for protection. Things went bad and we needed to get out of there, that¡¯s when our pilot Paba helped us get off the moon. As Angie said, we were lucky to have the help of Worrec, he is one of your men isn''t he?¡± He pressed combatively. He liked Olivia, but she had pushed a bit too far with Paba who was now looking at the guards that were admittedly, protecting the restaurant, but also surrounding them. Olivia seemed to realise her mistake and leaned back and pulled her hands away from the middle of the table. ¡°I don¡¯t know Worrec, probably one of yours?¡± she said to Harold, who nodded courtly, ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn''t mean to make you feel uncomfortable, this isn''t a¡­I just wanted to find out more about you,¡± she said looking between the three, ¡°I can get like that¡± ¡°If it¡¯s just a conversation Lady Olivia¡± started Angie, ¡°Then perhaps you can answer a few questions of ours?¡± it was Olivia¡¯s turn to look nervous now, and Harold had picked it up, but Angie continued, ¡°There seems to be a lot of chatter about Yeley being in some kind of trouble, politically I mean, we saw those rallies while we were going through town, maybe you can shed some light on that for us?¡± Olivia seemed to relax after this and nodded as though ready to explain it all. ¡°It¡¯s nothing that hasn''t happened before, and it¡¯s not something that you should worry about either¡± she said trying to put them at ease, ¡°Father said that they are merely looking to drive our prices down and because we couldn''t do that, they are adding extra pressure on us. Yeley is a place that exists because of our agriculture, so our entire economy runs off of it, there is no way that we would ever jeopardise our relationships with the other planets or the Houses to do that. The people are just venting their frustrations¡± she said, as though it had been rehearsed. Meno imagined that this would have been something that she had been told, and therefore relayed it out the same way. ¡°Those riots seemed to be a bit more than just frustrations¡± ¡°I wouldnt call them riots,¡± she said exasperatedly, ¡°The rally¡¯s have become a bit more frequent, and admittedly, Professor Grasci has gained some support, but he would never want to harm anyone, he is an academic, he just wants the people of Yeley to have the highest standard of living¡± when she finished this time, she didn''t seem as confident. She, perhaps personally, had some reservations on Professor Grasci herself. ¡°What is this planet''s relationship with the Houses?¡± Angie continued, seeming to have a list of questions that she wanted to ask, ¡°We are independent, but we do still have relationships with some of the Houses, mainly the Artelis and the Dorlec, but that is purely business. Politically they do not get involved with the planet¡± ¡°The Professor¡± started Meno, ¡°He¡¯s in charge of these rallies?¡± ¡°Well, they host the rallies in his name, whether he is running them directly I dont know. He is a very influential character, being a very popular professor, he lectures economics at our most prestigious university you see¡± she said but looking at their faces and realising that they were looking for some more information than that decided to continue, ¡°He¡¯s concerned that we are not taking the situation seriously enough, that we are allowing more and more regulations to be added without any response, but we are responding¡± she said strongly, ¡°My parents will not let Yeley be diminished by political threat, we offer food to those that need it, those planets know that and the Houses know that¡±. The rest nodded, perhaps, like Meno, they felt that they were not going to get any more information out of her than this, with her answers around Grasci being somehow prepared. Harold had merely nodded not offering anything else that needed to be said. ¡°Thank you for being so candid with us, Lady Olivia¡± ¡°Liv, please,¡± she said smiling, trying to lighten the mood, to which Harold turned but then stopped himself and rested back into his chair with a smile. ¡°Now what is it that you would like to do here, not today or as a place to go, but what do your normal routines look like, perhaps we can accommodate some of your hobbies into your routine?¡± Meno saw that the other two were not too sure how to answer this so he answered in their stead, ¡°I¡¯m used to training quite a bit, my old mentor used to have me run through exercises on a daily basis and to be honest, I am feeling a bit restless not doing that¡± he said hoping with all hope that she could do something for him on this, ¡°That is perfect,¡± she said brightly looking at Harold who nodded, ¡°I will arrange it, you could perhaps even train with the Traes guard if you prefer, we have excellent facilities¡± Meno could not help but smile at this and felt excited that perhaps with this, he could bring himself to settling a bit on the planet, he looked at the other two who both were not sure of what to ask, Paba had somewhat returned to the conversation after slinking down. Liv told them that it would be no problem at all and that whenever they thought about it, they could bring it through to her. With the conversation turning far more pleasant than it had started, and the food being brought out which was of the highest standard that Meno had ever tried with an enormous spread of fish, meats fruits and vegetables, they enjoyed the rest of their day soaking in the sunlight upon the riverbank. Chapter 11: Threads ¡°I dont think that you should be taking this so casually¡± said Liv trying to keep up with Meno as they made their way to the training rooms through the corridors of the temple of Det¡¯er. It had been a month since they sat on the river bank and had lunch with Liv and Harold. True to her word, Liv had arranged for training for Meno, she allowed him and Angie access to a private training room, and Paba was not too concerned with joining them at all. She had watched them in a few sessions, and at the suggestion of Efreet, her personal guard who had been impressed with both, offered the opportunity to join in training with the Traes guard, which was of course accepted by Meno immediately. Today, he was entering into his first spar with one of the soldiers. ¡°I¡¯m not taking it casually,¡± he said rubbing his hands with a grin on his face, ¡°I¡¯m just really excited, Liv, that¡¯s all. I haven''t sparred in years,¡± he said, near to licking his lips, she thought, ¡°My trainer got old, and couldn''t keep up anymore so¡­He would have loved this,¡± he said with genuine excitement breaking through. ¡°Are you sure that you are ready though?¡± her concern was real, the soldier that Meno was going up against was a professional soldier and a primer on top of that. ¡°Why are you so worried?¡± he said laughing, ¡°I¡¯ll be just fine, it¡¯s just a sparring match, nothing more¡± he said trying to reassure her. She supposed that he was right, but she still didn''t feel that he was in any way prepared for this. ¡°Because he¡¯s a soldier you numb skull¡± she said indignantly, ¡°You should be worried, he¡¯s a highly trained primer who has experience in combat, Meno. I told Commander Morris, no, but he said it was up to you¡± ¡°There we go¡± said Meno looking at her flummoxed face with a bright smile, ¡°It¡¯s up to me, and I want to do this¡± he gave her a broad grin and then continued into the training room where a group had gathered to watch. A few of the soldiers smiled and nodded to him as he walked in, offering a low bow to herself as she passed through the double doors of the training area. It was a large circular room that was on the highest point of the right-hand tower of the temple, with a circular opening in the roof that allowed the sun to gush in. Liv took her place on the balcony that surrounded the room and watched Meno walk down the stairs onto the training platform. In the centre of the room was a large compacted sand ring where the sparring usually took place, and surrounding that was a ring that allowed for about 5 meters of room for soldiers to practice their techniques, the walls were lined with a vast array of different training weapons and automatons used to simulate real combat, as well as tech tools that could simulate fighting against different users. She placed her elbows on the stone balcony balustrade and watched as Meno greeted the guards who were wishing him luck and the soldier, Abram August, the man whom he was about to spar against. Abram August was one of the premier soldiers within the Traes forces, a primer, who was by no means a genius in the larger scale of the galaxy, but one of the most effective soldiers that the Traes had ever had. Given the name, Zap by his colleagues, he had the ability to manipulate and energise static electricity. He was known for being a hand-to-hand combatant with the ability to deliver shocks to his opponent through his technique while they fought, seizing their muscles and hindering their ability to fight against him at their full strength. He was known for being a complete handful to take on. ¡°Did I miss it?!¡± roared Paba as she ran into the room and bent over the balustrade to look into the training room, ¡°You are just in time, Paba¡± Liv said as Paba came and stood next to her, brushing up against her as a hello. ¡°Hi Efreet,¡± Paba said flirtatiously to Liv¡¯s personal guard who blushed, which then made it even better when Paba blew him a kiss. Liv didn''t know if Paba was just that forward, or just liked to make him feel uncomfortable, either way, she loved it, even with Efreet¡¯s protests for Paba to remain more professional. It had taken some time, but Paba had forgiven Liv for pushing so much on the riverbank that day. Now Liv had found her to be gentle, caring and rather funny, regardless of all the ridiculous things she would say that would force people to think the opposite. Paba had started working on some of the Palace systems, though offline for security purposes, Liv understood this. She had heard that Paba had made some serious improvements to their weather management systems by creating a pattern to allow it to flow more easily over the lands and create a more complete system. There were even discussions of allowing her access to the network to see what other changes she could make, though this had been shot down pretty quickly by Morris and her father, not wanting to invite any threat after just one month of Paba being on site. They had reluctantly allowed her to see offline systems in the first place, but she had proven herself to be a remarkable talent. ¡°So this guy that Meno¡¯s fighting is meant to be pretty good right? Like, he¡¯s a primer?¡± ¡°He is, and he¡¯s one of our best¡± said Liv feeling like this was a worse idea the more and more she thought about it. ¡°You¡¯re a primer right?¡± she asked knowing very well that Liv was, as it had only been a few days since that she had explained her, underwhelming technique. Liv had the ability to see energy, not like others who could feel it through some form of sixth sense, or be sensitive to it¡¯s effects which would prickly the skin or give a person a sense of it. No, she could physically see it, like threads coming off of a user, tangling and flowing, each with their own signature and colour. All energy that came from primers had different signatures, a word that she always thought was aptly used, as she could quickly identify whose energy was being used when she saw the strands move in and out, and each primer had its own particular colour, way of flowing and structures that they would take. August had a bright white energy about him, and his strands moved erratically shifting from side to side as though rubbing across one another, as though creating the static. One of the reasons that she was so worried about Meno in this sparring session was that she had seen him train, and she had never seen any threads coming off of him, which was in itself peculiar, though not something completely new. People who didn''t have primer abilities had far more subtle threads, sometimes not visible at all unless under stress, and it was sometimes only once they used tech that Liv would be able to see uniform strands of energy moving around them. Tech gave off the same signature regardless of the person, if two people used the same tech, the signature would be the same and one of the only differences that would be seen was when different tech was used. Sometimes the tech user''s own colour would alter the true colour of the tech signature, but this would only alter the colour slightly, not change it completely. Tech built for different purposes had different signatures, but the same tech was mass-produced using the same signature. So Liv was always able to tell what kind of tech people were using by the threads that were emitted from it. Liv had been noticed as a child as she would pull and tug on the strands and cause abilities and tech to go off in unexpected ways, something which she avoided at all costs now, not wanting to cause any trouble. It was useful when reading people though, she could often see slight changes in even subtle energies for people under stress or joy, which had always come in handy, especially in her role. It was similar to what a seer would see when trying to discern a lie. ¡°We haven¡¯t missed it¡± Paba said turning to the doors of the training room Liv saw that Angie had made her way into the room, clearly choosing not to run in as Paba had. As usual, she was inspecting the room, looking at who was in there, where they were. She was a typical soldier like that, always on alert, always gauging a room before making a move. It saddened Liv a bit, that Angie was still not able to feel comfortable here. The other two had seemed to embrace living on Yeley so far, but Angie mostly kept to herself when she wasn''t babysitting Meno and Paba. She had training with Meno initially, though declined to join in the training with the guard when it was offered, choosing to stay in the private training room that Liv had offered. She hadn''t been difficult or upset, she just kept low and stayed quiet. If she wasn''t training, or watching her two friends, she would be in their apartments, watching over the city. Meno had told Liv not to worry, that this was just something she was more used to, a slower type of life. Liv would do anything to make Angie feel more at home. ¡°I¡¯m glad,¡± the old soldier said with a kind smile and a courteous nod to Liv. ¡°What do you think?¡± Liv asked nodding down to the grounds below. She knew not to ask Angie how she was doing, or if she was alright, as she would just get a generic deflective answer. ¡°Well, it¡¯s going to be interesting either way¡± Liv stopped herself from sighing at the generic, non-commital answer, and smiled as though this was a perfectly reasonable opinion to give. She turned back to see Meno stretching out his hamstrings in conversation with Zap, Abram August, was average height, skinny and had sharp features, a pointed nose and chin, wide eyes and dead straight hair. Liv had often wondered if different abilities altered the appearance of its user. Meno laughed and began to stretch out his back. He looked as though he didn''t have a care in the world as he warmed up to fight a pro soldier. She then heard the Commander of the Traes guard speak up from the other side of the balcony, ¡°Shall we begin?¡± said his deep voice. Commander Morris, a well-built elder man with a massive black, almost too black moustache and a shining bald head. Liv saw Meno nod enthusiastically and bump fists with the soldier, pulling away quickly after it looked like receiving a small shock, they both laughed at the gesture. Liv thought that August may have been checking Meno¡¯s energy barrier, which of course, the idiot didn''t have. She watched as, even though they were just measuring each other now, August was building up his energy, presenting as the usual toroidal force, like a bubble wrapping around him with his chaotic threads thrashing against one another in a constant flow, building from his core and flowing out of him to about a meter before flowing back into him, in constant motion. Liv still saw nothing from Meno, but perhaps the shyest shimmer, like the change in air above a fire. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Liv moved back as the shielding began to energise in front of them, a blue hue came before them and the training ground and the hum of energy blocked out most of the sound that came up from there. She heard through the corridor of the balcony the words of Morris as he shouted, ¡°Begin!¡± Liv watched as Meno and August began to circle each other, each watching the other''s movements very carefully. Paba was practically shaking next to Liv in the excitement of watching what was about to unfold, Angie kept her composure as she watched. Meno edged his foot closer to the soldier, who suddenly launched himself at Meno, his torus field of static energy lagging behind him for a moment, they collided with a flurry of blows, the soldier proving that he was experienced but Meno holding his own and showing that he was competent in the fight, but the force around Meno started to engulf him. Liv watched the threads move around Meno as August got up close to him as they passed and parried fists. The soldier¡¯s power built up with the friction in the air, but just then Meno landed a thrust into August¡¯s stomach. Still, the soldier recovered quickly and dodged another blow which put Meno in a compromising position. The soldier took advantage, delivering a blow that Liv could see was wrapped in the chaotic static electricity, the blow landed on Meno¡¯s left forearm as he attempted to block the thrust which pushed him backwards allowing him a reprieve from the fight. Liv watched as Meno looked at his left arm that he had used to block the blow, as though not understanding what had happened. August clearly had the advantage of experience and his ability over Meno. The blows that they traded were good and Liv could see that Meno knew how to handle himself, but August was showing that he knew how to handle himself against an opponent better than Meno did. He shook his arm out and smiled at August, he said something, but through the energy barrier that protected her, she could not hear. She thought perhaps that Meno would try and keep his distance from the soldier after that, but no, he ran directly at the soldier and picked up his leg delivering a forward kick that the soldier dodged, but Meno kept his balance well and immediately followed it up with a flurry of blows that August blocked. Liv saw the soldier using his energy to soften the blows as they came, but he seemed to be struggling to stop Meno who must have been receiving shocks from each hit, though, it didn''t stop him at all, and he threw more and harder at August. Eventually, the soldier got himself out from under the combination and delivered two heavy blows to Meno, one in the stomach and the other to his jaw before Meno dropped back. Paba gasped next to Liv, and she looked up to see that Angie had a smirk on her face as she watched. Meno was wringing his hands out and then touched his jaw still smiling nearly maniacally at his opponent, who was smiling too, though with a look of confusion, as though not quite understanding how he was doing this. Liv didn''t understand either, perhaps the soldier wasn''t adding too much power into his technique, but it certainly didn''t look like it. The threads were bright and highly energised, Meno should have been receiving some large shocks from each hit that he landed or received. This is what made August so difficult to fight against, Liv knew. She could see the soldiers around them and those on the grounds below nodding and discussing the fight. They all seemed to be as fascinated as she was. Before Liv could consider this more, Meno once again launched himself at the soldier, who seemingly hadn''t expected this either, ¡°Go, Meno! Get him!¡± roared Paba, Meno looked like he was going to kick once more, and once August got into position to block the move, changed his position, the kick had been a feint, but the soldier moved in time and blocked the move, and he grabbed Meno¡¯s arm, Liv saw the threads vibrate quickly and glow as Meno was delivered a massive shock that seized his muscles and contorted his back. The soldier stood up straight, with Meno slumping below him. She wanted to shout out that August should let him go, the soldier might have been under the impression that Meno could protect himself against the shocks with his own energy, but she still saw no sign of it at all. Before she could shout though, Meno managed to move his right hand and with a heavy strike he slammed his fist into the soldier''s face to an ¡®oooofff¡¯ from the crowd. ¡°Yes, Meno! Woooo!¡± cried Paba next to Liv who stood in shock, how had he done that? She saw that Angie was still smirking next to her. Did she know something about how Meno did this, was it some new tech or something? The soldier blinked his eyes as his nose began to bleed slightly from the hit. Meno had quickly moved away from the reach of the soldier after receiving the shock from him, looking as though he wasn''t sure what had happened to him again. He shook as he readied himself once more. The soldier wiped his nose with his sleeve and stood with his arms held out to Meno, beckoning him forward. Liv could see that the soldier was now building up more power, under the idea that his power was not taking effect on the young man. Stupidly, in Liv¡¯s opinion, Meno leapt forward again, and once again began hurtling blows at August, though not losing his shape as he did so, it was clear that they were both well trained, but August had the edge as he blocked and moved Meno delivering two blows in the blink of an eye, the threads glowing with each blow that he delivered and Liv knew that he had just thrown two heavy shocks into Meno¡¯s body with each hit, but Meno didn''t stop, swivelling he grabbed onto the shoulder of August and pulled him in close attempting to head butt him, but the soldier moved out of the way and pulled a knee up into Meno¡¯s stomach. Another ¡®ooooff¡¯ went through the room, Meno wasn''t done, he pushed back at August and followed quickly with a violent thrust forward of his right hand which was blocked by August, but pushed him backwards, his feet sliding against the floor with the weight of the blow. Where did that power come from? It seemed that August was asking himself the same question. Angie was now smiling at Meno as though this hidden secret that she knew was now showing itself. The crowd below were now speaking furiously, and Liv saw that August¡¯s eyes shot around him and noticed this. His pride was on the line now. He stood up straight and smiled, saying something to Meno who was now also bleeding from the nose from the last bout. Meno smiled and set himself, a look of determination etched on his face. Liv saw the threads from August begin to move violently, shaking and building, brightening with that white light, the air seemed to tense and little sparks of light began to take the room. Meno once more rushed forward, this time at a speed that Liv hadn''t seen from him before, he was much faster, but the soldier''s technique was already in full force, and he thrust both of his hands forward. The room erupted in light and cracks as the soldier unleashed the full force of all his energy at Meno. Liv ducked below the balustrade to shield herself from the light and she heard Paba squealing next to her. Angie still stood but covered her eyes. The light dissipated and Liv quickly stood to look down. That was too much, Meno wouldn''t have been able to¡­ he was standing there, his arms covering his face as though blocking an attack that now had already passed. She could see that his eyes were wide, and he was in complete shock at what had just happened. There were scorch marks on the ground around him from the burst. Liv didn''t know if he was able to move or not, and then the shields in front of them were lifted and Commander Morris walked into the ring. ¡°Fantastic, just fantastic, what a spectacle¡± he said resting a large hand on August¡¯s shoulder before quickly pulling it away as he received what Liv would now imagine to be a rather large shock. To her absolute relief, Meno dropped his hands and looked up at the Commander of the Traes guard, and his face still in a look of absolute shock, let out a peep of laughter. ¡°How¡­?¡± Liv heard herself say as she watched Meno gather himself somewhat, blinking furiously, as he tried to regain himself. ¡°That shouldn''t have been possible,¡± she said looking at Angie near accusingly, but Angie wasn''t smirking anymore, she herself was looking in the ring with a very serious expression, as though she also didn''t understand this. ¡°He¡¯s mad¡± Paba said almost dismissively, ¡°But he can fight!¡± she said laughing looking between Angie and Liv, noticing too late that her reaction was very different to theirs. Liv looked back down and saw that Meno was now being spoken to by both Morris and August, the Commander with his arm on Meno¡¯s shoulder, finding it safer than his own soldiers. Meno still seemed to be in shock at the scale of the technique that August had thrown at him, but he laughed nervously. August was smiling too and rubbing the blood from his nose that hadn''t stopped bleeding yet. ¡°Angie¡± Liv said moving closer to her and pulling her attention away from the fight below, ¡°What is he?¡± the old soldier looked taken aback at the question from Liv who was now standing right in front of her. Liv didn''t want to seem panicked, but what she had just witnessed shouldn''t have been possible. ¡°I think that both you and I know that he should not have survived that?¡± ¡°What?¡± Paba said indignantly, ¡°He was trained well¡± said Angie, looking at Liv as though trying to figure out what would be the best answer here, Liv could tell that this wasn''t the full truth though and gave the old soldier a look of disapproval to show that this was not a good enough answer. ¡°I don¡¯t know, I¡¯ve seen him fight before, and it didn''t make sense then either¡± Liv didn''t drop her glare and Angie chortled, seeming to realise that Liv wasn''t going to give this up, ¡°Honestly, Lady Olivia, I don¡¯t know. He fought people before that had tech and he won ¡°Angie,¡± Liv said moving toward her, ¡°What is he?¡± she said not knowing a better way to phrase it. The woman chortled and softened her expression heavily, ¡°Honestly, Lady Olivia, I have no idea¡± * Olivia sat her in Harold''s conservatory, at a wooden table with a purple and gold bonzai in front of her. The room was humid and surrounded by plants of all colours. The room smelt so fresh, it was one of her favourite places in the temple, with its large windows and trees that stretched to the glass roof. Harold had been teaching her about the plants of Yeley and how the ecosystem should be maintained and managed. He was always throwing great philosophy lessons in with it, using the plants as a metaphor for coexistence and growth, but today, she could not concentrate at all. Her mind was still caught with all of her thoughts from the fight the previous day. She couldn''t understand, and piece it together. How had Meno even survived that? Usually, someone would need to wrap their own energy around themselves just to protect against an attack like that, and even then, it would need to be energy that could combat the static force, or be strong enough to completely blow it away. Meno didn''t seem to have any of that, let alone any energy in the first place. She watched Harold as he wandered over, humming, a plant in his hands as he made his way over to the other side of the table with Olivia. He glanced up at her and she had the distinct feeling that he knew she was burning with a question for him, but as usual, with his broad ever-present smile and monk-like disposition, he waited for her to ask it. She didn''t quite know how to phrase it though. ¡°You knew Sha-En then, right?¡± she said deciding that this may be a good place to start. ¡°Yes, you know that,¡± he said looking up at her though with a look of intrigue, ¡°I visited their capital Tlon on a few occasions¡± ¡°Did you find them¡­dangerous?¡± she asked nervously, firstly not wanting to give much away, but secondly not wanting to show any prejudice that she didn''t have. She knew that the Sha-En were villainised after the war and that this was wrong. ¡°Dangerous, eh?¡± he said smiling, ¡°Does this have anything to do with the Kryptea arriving tomorrow?¡± she took a second, having completely forgotten that the Kryptea were coming. It was all to do with the Lotus being attacked, but it wasn''t because of the attack that the Kryptea were being sent, it was because of who was attacked, Lord Sonny Matise, a friend of the Traes family. The Kryptea were being sent as a goodwill gesture by the Autarch to protect the heads of planets within the region. A way of saying that he would still offer protection even to those who were independent. Her father had told her not to worry about this, and it was purely a political move, nothing to do with the riots that were gathering in intensity, as well as frequency. ¡°I guess it wasn''t¡± said the old advisor gauging her reaction correctly. ¡°They used energy differently, right? Like they didn''t, or dont¡± she added, knowing that even though the Jinn was called the last Sha-En, he wasn''t actually the last of his people, their planet Uqbar had been destroyed by the Kryptea, but not all of the Sha-En were on that planet, they were scattered throughout the galaxy. What she did know from her teachings was that after the war, they were considered dangerous, and the Kryptea¡¯s actions while deemed as a horrible crime, were somewhat justified in the threat that the Sha-En could pose. It was of course propaganda against them. This line of thought was adopted by most of the galaxy though, as it was known that the Sha-En, while prominent themselves, were part of the Masma, Bel, the old god-emperor¡¯s empire. ¡°Not like how we use our own signature to create a desired effect, they manipulated the very energy itself?¡± ¡°So, the fight yesterday eh?¡± he said with that knowing grin, ¡°What did those eyes of yours see?¡± ¡°Nothing¡± she blurted out, dropping the pretence, ¡°That¡¯s the problem, I didn''t see anything coming from him at all. He didn''t have a single thread come through, he showed absolutely no energy manipulation whatsoever, so I can¡¯t understand how he did it. That¡¯s why I want to understand how the Sha-En did it, they changed the energy around them in different ways, right?¡± ¡°Yes¡­¡± he said thinking for a moment, ¡°And you suspect that young Meno is like that?¡± she nodded sharply, hoping that he could offer some answer to that, ¡°Tell me why?¡± ¡°When using energy, you need to shape it, you need to make sure that you are recycling the energy around it and forming it within your own signature, taking what is around you and using it to amplify the energy that is within your control¡± she recited, knowing that this was the textbook example, ¡°But that leaves a trace, it is shown and can be felt, and I see it as threads coming out, but he had no threads, no traces. Even the Kryptea have some form of this¡± she said thinking back to the one time that she had met a Kryptea on a visit from the attache of the Autarch who was accompanied by one, their energy was there, but it was held close to the body, just within the skin, held tight and swirling within them. ¡°Could it be tech?¡± he asked with a smile, she knew that he loved it when she worked things out herself. ¡°We scanned them when they first came in, he only has tech comms, same as Paba and Angie did not have any tech on her at all¡± she said, having checked this before their conversation, ¡°I don¡¯t know what it was, but it could be something like a Sha-En ability right?¡± she thought for a moment and knew that Harold would allow her the time, ¡°Or¡­Masma?¡± ¡°What are you really asking, my lady?¡± Olivia took a moment before answering, and then looked up at him seriously and asked, ¡°Should we not be nervous about someone like him?¡± Chapter 12: The Fragility of Peace ¡°...And that¡¯s what we have been saying, Jorre, there have been more disturbances to our once peaceful city than ever before. How are we meant to feel safe in our own homes, how can we expect parents to walk their children down the streets? Now I¡¯m not saying that I am against the Yelean Reform, in fact, I think it¡¯s important, as you know, but people are starting to ask the question, when will the Traes respond to the accusations being laid against them? Do they even care about what their citizens are going through?¡± ¡°They have responded, let¡¯s not pretend as though we don¡¯t know that the Traes have reinforced their guard with Kryptea. What does that mean for us? You can pretend like that is enforcing the protection of the people, but only three Kryptea, clearly that is for the protection of the family itself, not the people. Once again, the Traes show their true colours¡± ¡°I think that¡¯s a great point, Huwe, all we see from them are PR stunts and a nonchalance like nothing is happening to the people of Det¡¯er, but clearly the Traes are concerned over themselves. Olivia, of course, the daughter of the planetary heads, parades around through the city with her guards and her posse acting like meeting with the people and passing platitudes will make everything alright. When are we going to dig into the real issues here, our planet is being strangled by regulation from an alliance that we aren¡¯t even part of, how does that make any sense?¡± ¡°Look, the Kryptea being here is because of the attack on Lord Louis Matise, we all know that, dont we? It¡¯s clear that there is unrest in this sector and it is perhaps precautionary¡± ¡°Yes that¡¯s a convenient story, Huwe, let¡¯s put that into perspective shall we, yes, Prince Louis Matise was attacked, but on the Lotus, a place that is known to draw in the wrong type of crowd, a dangerous lot, and if rumours are true, it was an Ortu attack. A terrorist organisation that has nothing to do with Yeley at all. Honestly, we should not be linking the two at all, on a separate note, I dont think that a Prince should be doing whatever he does on a ship like the Lotus anyway, but that¡¯s just me, maybe I¡¯m old school¡± ¡°The bigger problem that the Traes have is that Professor Grasci, of course, the head of Yelean Reform has told his members that he will be speaking at the Suns Rising Festival. The Traes have said nothing¡± ¡°I get that, Mev, but are we not blowing this all out of proportion? The Traes have steered this planet well for generations now, surely we should trust them in times like this rather than question it? I know that these new standards are forcing difficult conditions, but last time they spoke they did ask for patience, surely we should give that to them?¡± ¡°Nonsense, the people of Yeley have allowed Yeley to succeed, the Traes are figureheads, and they are proving that now, more than ever. It¡¯s only the lunatics that are supporting the Traes now, a dangerous lot that believe that everything rests on their shoulders, they dont believe that Yeley can succeed without the Traes and I must say, it is behind the times¡± Are you then in support of Reform?¡± ¡°I¡¯m in support of the people of Yeley, and for that¡­¡± Meno held his hand up to pause the hologram of the news show that was playing in the lounge of their apartments. He looked over to Angie who was sitting at the table and had also been watching the news show. ¡°If you are watching the news and hearing opinions, that is propaganda,¡± he said to Angie, reminding him of the lesson from Swan. He was trying to swim through the thoughts running through his own mind and could see that Angie was too. ¡°We need to start thinking about what we do if this all goes tits up¡± he nodded solemnly and knew this was something that she had been thinking about for some time now. The last thing he wanted to do was leave, but if things became too complicated here, they wouldn''t have a choice. It already seemed that the city was on the brink of something big, and unfortunately, the only thing offering them protection here was the Traes, if they fell, then they would be alone. Was this their test from Worrec? ¡°Where is Paba?¡± he asked, ¡°She¡¯s implementing the new algorithm she built for the weather system¡± Angie said looking out of the window, ¡°Harold is very keen to get her to improve it as much as possible¡±. Meno stared at the still holograms strewn around the room. Were they right? Were the Traes blind to the effects of what was happening to their people, was he himself? After all, they were living within the temple in all of this luxury, with no real duties, just their whims being answered every day with no worries to weigh them down. He wondered what it was like to live as a citizen. Part of him thought that all of this talk was the cause of these issues, a causa sui, Swan would have said, but did that matter much? There was no point in denying the occurrence of something to its face. The Kryptea¡¯s arrival had caused more of a stir than Meno had originally and potentially, naively, thought it would. He knew the stories of the Silent Army, named so for never questioning or denying an order. They would do whatever was asked of them, with no dispute, no required reason, they simply acted. They had always been fascinating to Meno, an army known throughout the galaxy as being the most powerful, the most effective. They had come under the command of the Autarch after previously being an independent House after they destroyed the Sha-En House. It was the last Sha-En who had fought against them, and in their defeat, they were punished by the Autarch to servitude. ¡®...of course he did¡¯ said Angie as though this should have been a given, ¡®You don¡¯t get rid of the galaxy''s most powerful armed force. I¡¯m sure the Autarch always had his eyes on them¡¯ she added quietly, as though not wanting to be overheard, even though it was just Paba, Angie and himself in the apartment when she had said it. They were not permitted to take part in the ceremonial welcome when they did arrive but stood on a balcony overlooking the grand entrance of the temple when they were greeted by the Traes. Meno had only met Pac and Eher Traes once before, in a similar welcoming, though not in a great hall, or a ceremony, but rather within their apartments on the top floor of the temple. While they both still stood tall, ethereal, and beautiful, there was an exhaustion to them now. They looked, depleted. There were three Kryptea that had arrived, and even with the sombre mood that hung over their arrival, Meno had found himself excited to see one for the first time. There were two men and a woman, she was the one in charge by the looks of it walking ahead of the other two. Each of them tall, much taller than the average person, lean though wrapped with muscle. Their skin was red-tanned, she was darker than the men, and their heads were shaved. All three were barefoot and wore simple beige robes. They looked more individually powerful than anyone that Meno had ever seen before, and if he had not known that they were Kryptea, he would have thought that they were professional athletes or survivalists, but it was their look that made them seem even more. Their ascetic gaze and harsh features showed them as hardened soldiers. Even though the oldest seemed only a couple of years further than Meno, their youth was gone, stolen from them. ¡®They are taken into the Kryptea as children, left out in the wilderness of their world, Lacedon for years, only then the survivors are trained into soldiers. They are broken, then rebuilt, they give them food that grows them, that¡¯s why all Kryptea are big, strong and wickedly fast. They are soldiers from the moment that they are taken in and stripped of any individuality. They merely serve¡¯ Angie had shivered while saying it. She had seen them in action, and the only thing she had said was that they were like a hurricane, they ripped through cities, tearing out what needed to be destroyed without mercy, without prejudice. Simply following orders. The woman and the man behind her to the right both held simple, iron swords in their hands, the point or what should have been a point but was rather a blunt end, resting on the floor. The third and the largest of the three didn''t carry a weapon at all. Angie had told him that they were always permitted to carry weapons by the Autarch, and because they were bound by orders, the risk of them using their weapons against those they were charged to protect was non-existent, it was never seen as a threat. When he asked about the third that didn''t carry a weapon, thinking that this meant he had another speciality, Angie frowned and said, ¡®He must not have taken a name yet. The Kryptea are not given an identity, you must take one and then become a Kryptea. Before you ask, it¡¯s not about choosing a name, it¡¯s about taking one, by blood. If he isn''t carrying a weapon, it¡¯s because he hasn''t taken a name yet, and isn''t officially a Kryptea yet, which is why he can¡¯t carry a weapon in public. He probably goes by a number she had finished examining him. Meno thought this strange because out of the three, he looked the most fierce. ¡°This again, it¡¯s everywhere,¡± said Olivia from behind Meno who quickly jumped up after being lost in thought. He looked at her and saw that she was looking around the room at the Hologram news that he had paused. ¡°Shit, sorry Liv, I didn''t know you were coming,¡± he said making the holograms disappear. He looked at Angie, questioning why he didn''t get a warning that Olivia had entered the room. ¡°It¡¯s okay, there¡¯s no escaping it. I should perhaps just accept that we are evil¡± she said throwing her hands up with a quick smile, but it didn''t reach her eyes. ¡°We think it¡¯s all nonsense if that helps¡± said Angie now perched on the balcony. ¡°Yes, well, your accommodations dictate that you need to say that doesn''t it?¡± she said with a wink. Liv was trying to put on a brave face, but Meno could tell that everything that was being said about her and her family had been taking a toll. She had been quiet for a few days after Meno¡¯s sparring match, and they had all questioned why, but the Traes must have had word that news like this was coming and therefore they forgave her for not being as present as she had been. It wasn''t long until she was popping back into their apartments when she had free time, with all of her usual questions, trying to dissect their lives and find out more about them. They had managed to turn this into a bit of a game, her knowing that they didn''t want to tell all, and not accepting that. Angie had masterfully been able to make this seem as though they were somehow very important, and everything about them was classified, Liv hadn''t bought this for a moment, but she understood that there were secrets around them. They had, after all, come to a foreign planet with no previous ties and handed over a coin, offering them safety in the home of the planetary heads and protection, they were wrapped in mystery, what Liv didn''t know, was that it was all very mysterious even to them. ¡°Well, should we go, Paba will meet us at the glider, she¡¯s already in the hangar,¡± said Angie standing and dropping the datapad that she had clearly been messaging Paba on. They joined Efreet who had been standing outside of the doors, now more comfortable to let Liv be in their company alone and made their way down the lift that Meno was now comfortable with. He internally praised himself for this every time. The doors opened and they were met by Paba, who looked anxious, ¡°Do we need that to come with us?¡± she said throwing her thumb over her shoulder. She was pointing to one of the Kryptea who was standing next to the glider, with two other guards standing a few paces away from him. It was the nameless Kryptea, the one that didn''t carry a weapon. ¡°He¡¯s got orders and so do I, unfortunately¡± Liv said making her way passed Paba but placing a hand on her shoulder. ¡°It¡¯s just the way things go¡± Their journey on the glider was silent, and uncomfortable, on their way to the library as they did once a week, Meno sat watching the Kryptea who sat opposite him staring out of the window. It was clear that nobody else was comfortable for him as the guards had been relegated to sitting on his side, perhaps as a way to protect against him, but Meno knew it was because Liv, Angie and especially Paba wanted to be as far away from him as possible. At first, he was surprised by the size of him, he was by all accounts, larger than most people, it wasn''t that he was just tall, he was just bigger. He had deep lines under his eyes, and his expression never showed any interest, familiarity or friendliness, nor malice if Meno was to be honest. He just looked. It was sad, thought Meno. He also looked younger now that Meno was close to him, close to his own age. Meno couldn''t understand what needed to be done to someone to make them like this, what this person needed to go through. He thought about what Angie had told him about this one''s name, and that he didn''t have one. This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it. ¡°Stop staring¡± Angie whispered with a now familiar elbow in his side. Liv tried to act like it was all right, but Meno could see that something had changed. Their usual fun was now interrupted, and conversation was now limited from its usual game of questions and answers and stories, it felt as though it was interrupted, invaded. The Kryptea didn''t seem to show any notice of their unease, or Meno¡¯s staring at him. ¡°I¡¯m Meno by the way,¡± he said leaning over and reaching his hand out to the Kryptea, before he could stop himself. The cabin held its breath and it seemed that even the Kryptea was shocked by the gesture. Meno¡¯s hand was left dangling in front of the Kryptea whose arms remained folded as he stared blankly at it. ¡°Why don¡¯t you¡­¡± Angie started and pulled at the back of Meno¡¯s shirt. He sat back down and looked at the room, Paba was looking at him with her usual wide eyes of shock, Angie looked incredulous but Liv had a slight smile and he saw that Efreet was worried with his hand resting on his weapon. ¡°They dont do that¡± Angie whispered to him. He and the Kryptea looked at each other for a while, until the Kryptea looked back out of the window. ¡°We¡¯re here,¡± said Liv, trying to ease the tension in the room, ¡°Thank fuck¡± said Paba almost jumping to her feet. Meno watched as the Kryptea made his way to the doors first and waited outside for them to depart. He stood there by the glider while they made their way in. ¡°Why was everyone so tense?¡± Meno whispered to Angie as they walked into the library away from the swarming kids. She looked at him as though he knew absolutely nothing. ¡°They have full authority to eliminate anyone they see as a threat, Meno. If you hold a weapon to a Kryptea, they attack¡± she said very seriously, ¡°If he thought that you were trying to attack him, he would have killed you, that¡¯s why people limit their interactions with Kryptea. You can¡¯t risk them thinking that you might want to harm them or someone they are protecting or following¡± ¡°You''re an idiot¡± added Paba with a quick bark of childish laughter. Meno didn''t realise how nervous the rest of his group was around the Kryptea, he had understood that they wanted to be cautious around him, but he didn''t expect them to jump like that. He looked out of the doors of the library and saw him still standing by the glider, scanning the rooftops. Even after his sparring match, which even Pac Traes himself had commented on - in a message sent to him by Olivia - doing a great job, just looking at the man, Meno knew that he didn''t stand much of a chance. He had scars on his shoulders that looked as though they moved onto his back but the beige cloth of his clothing covered it. He was battle-tested. Even if he wasn''t officially a Kryptea yet. After being swarmed by children, Meno was shuffled into a corner where he once again, as he had on five separate occasions now, started to read to the children, and like on all occasions, he had chosen a book that he had wanted to read. ¡°...And so King Locne stood against them, his own House, his own people¡± he said standing over the children his free hand looming over them as they watched with rapt attention, ¡°Betrayed and cast out, but not defeated, oh no, Locne made his stand and fought for three days and three nights, alone, against the tyranny of his brethren for the injustices they hurtled across the galaxy, and on the final day, with the Shaking Spear in hand, he claimed victory and rid the universe the scourge of his kin!¡± the children clapped and cheered as Meno finished reading his story. He bowed to them and upon coming up saw that Angie was watching him with a smile on her face, she gave him a nod, almost congratulating him. He made his way over to Angie and Liv after the children were scampered away by one of the Matrons and saw that once again Paba was standing to the side as one of the guards was reading for her. They now made her wait for the story to be finished as a method of punishment. ¡°What was it this time?¡± he asked, ¡°She got into an argument with a five-year-old. Called the kid dumb¡± Angie answered trying not to laugh. Meno rubbed his eyes and tried not to laugh. She seemed to notice that they were laughing at her and crossed her arms, hoisting her nose up. ¡°She really isn''t good with kids¡± continued Angie, but Meno was no longer concentrating on their conversation. At the doors to the library, he saw the Kryptea, he had not entered the library but was looking in, watching the children, and he had the first hint of softness to his harsh face with its heavy lines under the eyes. He was watching the children as though happy for them, glad that they were playing and enjoying the sight of their joy. He looked up and they locked eyes, and Meno saw him turn, looking somewhat embarrassed that this had been seen. They waited for Olivia to finish up with her story, and then watched as she spoke with the matrons, nodding and taking their hands, the elder woman looking as though they were offering words of encouragement to her. Liv graciously thanked them, and Meno saw the now familiar look of telling people that everything was fine, and not to worry. At this point though it was clear to everyone that not everything was fine, and that she was under a great amount of strain. She stayed cheery as they made their way into the glider and lifted off, laughing at Paba who was still sulking at the fact that she had received punishment, ¡°I know that this sounds childish, but that little shit started it¡± she said indignantly, ¡°Yes, well, he is a¡­¡± ¡°Down!¡± roared the Kryptea reaching for Olivia across the cabin, they all jumped in shock at the eruption of light outside of the glider which was followed by an enormous clap and a rumbling of the ship, they shook in the glider as they felt it jerk and start to spin. Meno looked at Angie who was pushing her arm against the walls of the cabin looking outside. Meno felt the entire glider start to spin, his stomach lurched with the motion. The gravity engines were out, there was no other way that they would feel this motion otherwise. Liv and Paba were screaming, and the initial shock from the Kryptea¡¯s movement had caused Efreet to get in between his charge and the warrior. ¡°We¡¯re going down, I didn''t see where it came from!¡± roared Angie who was still looking out of the window. Meno tried to pull Paba off of him as she screamed into his ear. He looked over to Liv to see that sheer panic had set in for her, it didn''t look like she was able to take a breath. The glider came to a sliding crash along the streets of Det¡¯er, the hull of the glider buckled under the weight of the crash and the screeching of the metal against the cobbled street became deafening, and sparks continued to wasp up outside of the windows. Meno caught glimpses of people rushing away as the glider spun with sparks flying up from the side. Meno spotted it though, through the spin and the flashing from the windows, he saw two of them, two people in black exo-suits. This was no accident, they were under attack. ¡°Weapon!¡± Angie screamed at Efreet with her hand held out. The guard seemed to be in a manner of shock too and looked at Angie with confusion, ¡°Now, Efreet!¡± he handed over a pistol to her and she shook her head. ¡°We need something that will cut through the shields, lasers won¡¯t work,¡± she said looking around, Meno was reminded of what Mr. Dimitri had taught him around this, that energy shields were effective against energy weapons where they could absorb or deflect laser fire for a while, but would eventually break, but the shields were not as effective against projectiles that could penetrate them if there was enough velocity. One of the other guards struggled to get to the centre of the cabin as the spinning began to stop, and pulled up a hatch, which revealed a number of weapons. Angie made her way over and Meno stood, checking on Olivia, who still seemed to be in a panic. Efreet had seemed to come to and was now trying to calm her while preparing his own weapon. The other guards were handing out rifles to Angie, and gave her a look before releasing the weapon, giving her a sharp nod as though saying, ¡®I am trusting you¡¯. The Kryptea was already making his way to the door, and Meno followed him. The guards tried to hand the unarmoured man and himself a weapon, the Kryptea declined but Meno took one and a shield from Efreet. ¡°Do we have a count?¡± ¡°I saw two¡± Meno said, ¡°Five¡± Angie said, ¡°And they will have cover from the rooftops so prepare yourself¡± ¡°Comms are down¡± said Efreet who had now gathered himself, ¡°You two, stay with them¡± he said to his accompanying guard, pointing at Liv and Paba, ¡°Don¡¯t let anyone in here, and keep trying the comms. The crash would have been noticed¡± he added to ensure that nobody panicked, ¡°But we need as much support as possible¡± ¡°Shields up front Meno¡± said Angie pulling him back, and allowing Efreet to step forward next to the Kryptea who had not said a word yet. She was looking at him as though she regretted that he needed to do this. He swallowed and focused. There was no sound coming from outside yet, but the smell of burning metal was now quite pungent. Meno considered what was happening for a moment, they didn''t want to destroy the ship, which meant that they wanted to capture Olivia, which meant that they were going to need to fight them all off and prevent them from getting to the glider, and without the comms, it was going to be just them for the time being. They couldn''t count on help and had to assume that the attackers had planned on this.. He readied himself to prevent anyone from getting into the cabin of the glider.. ¡°Three, two¡­¡± said Efreet holding up a gloved hand counting down, ¡°One!¡± the door swung open and they were met with bright laser fire which hit each of the shields creating cracking noises as the light met with the bubble-like barriers. The Kryptea was already gone, and Meno who had momentarily closed his eyes at the brightness of the fire had not seen where he had gone. ¡°Deploying!¡± roared Efreet who dropped a steel plate on the ground which released a bubble that engulfed them, Meno recognised the hum as a gravity shield and realised that it had been deployed just in time as he heard bullets stream past in screams as their trajectory was altered and shifted, he heard pops as they hit the glider behind him. They could protect the ship and themselves with the energy shields, but their enemies were using different types of rounds. Meno stuck his head out now under the cover of the gravity shield and his own energy shield and saw that there were two black exo-suited soldiers firing from behind a fountain at them, Efreet was firing at a rooftop and Meno decided to act himself he pulled the trigger of his own weapon which released a stream of red light towards the two enemies, it bounced off one soldiers shield, his aim failed him and the weapon hit the wall spraying dust below. ¡°The Kryptea?!¡± said Angie who was firing in the opposite direction. Meno looked around trying to find him, but didn''t see him anywhere. From what he could see, they were surrounded from the front, at least five soldiers were firing at them from around the street, and they couldn''t be in a worse position, they were close to the middle of a four-way intersection, with all of the paths for enemies to attack from each direction, with high rooftops hanging above them with countless windows looking directly onto their position. They planned this well. He couldn''t see behind him as the glider was blocking that path and could only imagine that there were more of them coming from behind, ¡°I¡¯ll cover our backs!¡± he roared to Angie over the chaos and he could see that she wanted to say something but decided against it and nodded. His breathing was heavy and uneven now, but he somehow felt clear and calm. ¡°Smoke,¡± she said pointing at the ammunition box that one of the guards had brought out, he pulled one with a blue tag and hurtled it over the glider, thanking the moment that Efreet had decided to explain what their different weaponry was in the training room, He grabbed a belt of grenades as well from the box, and watching for fire, made his way over the glider before sliding onto the other side before he could draw any fire. As soon as he landed he saw that he was correct and that soldiers were making their way to their position, but he also saw the Kryptea through the smoke, he had forward kicked one of the attackers against the wall and saw a blood spray from the black exo-suit, he still had no weapon. He had another two attackers around him and he easily dodged their shots, with a calmness and ease that Meno couldn''t fathom. With lightning speed, he gripped the arm of one of the soldiers, pulled it and thrust a palm into the chest of his victim which caved in the attacker''s chest. The last soldier tried to fire at him from behind but the Kryptea deftly moved out of the way. The attacker dropped the rifle and thrust both hands forward and Meno could see that it was an energy push, and it released flames from his hands in a desperate attempt to try and drive the Kryptea back, but to Meno¡¯s horror, the Kryptea walked through the flame and gripped the attacker''s wrists, snapped them and pulled the man down thrusting his knee up which collided with the attacker''s chin, bending his neck backwards violently. Holy shit, thought Meno. all of that had happened in a second. The Kryptea looked at Meno and pointed across the intersection, and Meno saw that there were two attackers setting up in a position. Without thinking he released one of the grenades from the belt and hurled it at them, he seemed to have thrown it before they could set up their own shield and their focus was on the Kryptea soldier. Meno could understand that. The grenade exploded, at the feet of the soldiers, the blast hit Meno with a shockwave and caused his ears to ring, he felt the heat on his skin as the entire intersection became consumed with even more smoke and dust with the explosion of the grenade. Meno gathered himself and through the chaos saw, coming through the cloud that they were in a glowing bubble, only then noticing that it was a rushing attacker hurtling their way toward him, with arm outstretched. Meno knew that he was either going to try a primer ability or use tech on him. He readied himself and lowered down, placing his left foot on the side of the glider to be able to push himself off. Meno was counting that the visibility was bad and disengaged his own shield, which if the soldier was also experiencing a lack of visibility would have made him near invisible, but the soldier continued his path and Meno pushed off of the glider with all his might and struck. He needed to endure the strain of shield, pushing himself through it, a familiar feeling to when he had fought the Dorlec soldier on the ship when leaving Gol. He thrust his hand up and caught the chin of the soldier and with his free hand gathered all of his strength and delivered a mighty blow into his solar plexus which folded the soldier. Meno then kicked the soldier''s weapon away, pulled the rifle that was hanging on his back and shot the soldier in the leg so that they wouldn''t be able to get away. He stopped himself from apologising but did wonder how that looked to the onlooker. He then needed to duck and cover himself as light hit through the cloud of dust and smoke as blue laser fire hurtled toward him, he miraculously managed not to get hit by the fire that looked as though it was going to hit his shoulder, and his back hit against the glider. He quickly engaged the shield once more knowing that it would make him visible. ¡°I¡¯m at your back!¡± he heard Angie scream behind him, and he couldn''t stop himself from smiling at her arrival. ¡°Kryptea is out there, I don¡¯t know how many we have,¡± he said, only now realising that he was panting. The smoke was now gone, and it seemed that it was just dust ahead of them, but that too was now starting to clear. ¡°Throw grenades that way, I¡¯ll use the dust to go that way,¡± he said pointing to the left. He disengaged his shield once more and saw Angie nod as he ran passed her wanting to use the slight cover that they had left as best as he could. He could see three bubbles in the dust and knew that his only chance was to catch them off guard and get into their shields, as he only had a laser rifle with him, useless against a shield unless able to constantly fire and deplete the energy. He barged forward and knocked one of the soldiers off balance, not quite hitting him, but he did enough to compress the shield and push the soldier off of their feet. He quickly made his way around the other soldier to cover himself, discharging the rifle into the soldier''s chest, who hadn''t reacted in time, but just then the soldier who he had shot who had gone limp was now pulled backwards and Meno was faced with the barrel of a rifle. Two blasts went off on the other side of the intersection and the slight shock wave allowed Meno to push the barrel to the side, but he didn''t move fast enough, and then laser ripped into his shoulder with searing heat, he cried out but pulled himself back and stood up to the soldier, he pushed the rifle away from himself, his now wounded arm, not able to do much more, it felt as though it was now lame, but it did enough. He used his other hand and gripped behind the soldier''s helmet and crashed his own head into it, cracking the glass which shot a shooting pain into his brain. He felt a whoosh next to him and realised that he had forgotten about the third soldier, he turned, his vision now blurry, and received another laser shot on the left side of his gut before he saw the Kryptea once more as he delivered an all mighty blow to the soldiers helmet, Meno had barely seen the movement he had thrust so quickly, but he heard it, the crack of the helmet and the sounding of his jaw dislodging, and saw the soldiers head stopped in an unnatural position. Meno stumbled trying to hold himself up, his left arm now dangled next to him, unable to move. He looked around and saw laser bursts flying through the street from the glider, but these were not black exo-suited soldiers, but people wearing brightly coloured clothing, and loose cloth, they were shooting at the the attackers. These were the people of Det¡¯em. He smiled in disillusion. Meno fell to one knee, his consciousness fading. He felt a hand hold him up by his collar and looked to the side unable to turn his head up, and saw the beige cloth hiding the almost red-tan legs of the Kryptea. He felt himself being held up with ease. This Kryptea was unbelievable. He turned back and as he was about to lose consciousness watched the people of Yeley, protect Lady Olivia Traes, daughter of the Planetary leadership. Peace was gone now, it had all but vanished with this attack against them, but the people of Yeley had made their decision. ¡°You¡¯re¡­so cool¡­¡± was the last word that he managed to mutter before black engulfed him. Chapter 13: Aftermath ¡°In broad daylight, Moran!¡± roared Pac Traes at the Commander of the Traes guard, who shrank under the sheer anger of the planetary head. The commander shrank under the words. ¡°How did this happen?¡± he said turning away from Moran and Harold, Shilu, his closest advisors who were all lined up before himself and his wife, who had now gone quiet, but the white-hot rage simmering beneath the controlled surface. He turned to look at Eher, her eyes were still blotchy and red from crying earlier, but now they glared as red orbs. ¡°We must determine first who is responsible¡± said Harold, hanging his head low. ¡°Who is responsible? Who is responsible, Harold? It was Grasci! Of course, it was, his people have been threatening this for months. Let us not act like fools for the sake of politics now!¡± ¡°They were organised, armed, we haven¡¯t seen that level of sophistication from the Reform. This was a strike team,¡± answered Moran on Harold''s behalf, but the old man spoke up anyway, ¡°We have monitored their cells closely, my Lord, we have seen nothing that suggests that they would be capable of something like this,¡± ¡°You monitored them during the attack?¡± Eher asked, her voice calm, but venomous. ¡°They are not always visible, my Lady, they operate underground, it is difficult¡­¡± ¡°So, no,¡± she said with cold finality. Pac Traes tried to collect himself. He had two dead guards, a seriously injured guest in Meno who by all accounts had acted without regard for his own life, his people were in a state of panic, and they had no way to politically manoeuvre themselves into a position of a counterattack. He made a mental reminder to honour the bravery of those citizens who picked up arms from the guards and stood in defence of his daughter. ¡°Moran,¡± he said slowly, trying to contain his anger, ¡°Prepare your guards better than what they showed today. If it wasn''t for our guests I dare say that we may be having a completely different conversation. The guard is to wear helmets at all times from this point forward if a mouse moves, I want them to be able to see it, and I want them to obliterate it, is that understood?¡± the commander saluted, looking as though he wanted to say more as his black moustache ruffled, but knowing that he was in no position to, decided not to. ¡°You are dismissed¡± The commander left the patio, leaving only Shilu and Harold awaiting more wrath. The patio that usually held so much light seemed to be drenched in shadow with the weight of the day''s events, there was a heaviness in the air that Pac knew he was responsible for, but felt it nevertheless. ¡°We must consider that the reason the three were sent to us was for a moment like this, my Lord, my Lady. We should protect them better than we¡­¡± ¡°I would sacrifice each of them a thousand times over to ensure that my daughter never even had to see something like that,¡± Eher said, this time the mood was far tenser, she had become ice while looking at him. Her maternal reaction from earlier had slid into a still, hardened woman that Pac had never seen before. He wanted to comfort her now but knew that they both needed this intensity now, more than ever, this was no longer speculation, an attack had been made on their name. Pac ran his forefinger along his forehead and took a seat. He knew what needed to be done, but that it would provide the Houses an opening to Yeley that they were clearly looking for. They had seen their manoeuvres as just that, and had now been caught playing a game against a prepared enemy, he felt foolish, and naive. He was going to lose because he had not seen the strategy, and now he was caught in it, their moves had been decided for them. He knew that they needed to consider the wider ramifications of this and that the powers of the Lotus and the Houses would be converging. He had trusted, he had based his thoughts on previous actions, not what was possible to happen. ¡°Has she contacted?¡± he said to Harold, Shilu was still in the room, being the only member of the Traes guard who was privy to such conversations. Being aligned with Harold necessitated it. ¡°She has, and we have informed her of the day''s events, that there is no need for her at the moment, though I don¡¯t know if that will stop her from coming¡± ¡°And him?¡± Eher said softly, though her voice carried in the room. ¡°We must assume, my Lady. We have still not had any word from the Artelis either, though my sources say that Lord Sonny has been ordered to stay away from Yeley altogether¡± he said solemnly. Pac watched as the old advisor rubbed his hands clearly uncomfortable, something that he had never seen to quite this extent before. Harold¡¯s influence in their lives had been extensive, it had brought them their daughter, he had taught and trained her, and Pac now had the sickening feeling that this reaction, rubbing his hands in the anxiety of what he needed to deliver, the responses of the Queen of Midnight, of Olivia¡¯s father, were the words they had always feared. ¡°What is your advice?¡± ¡°My Lord?¡± ¡°It¡¯s why you came to us yes? To advise and guide us, to protect Olivia. Tell us what is going to happen¡± The old man dropped his head. Pac needed to remember who this man actually was, and not allow the feeble form before him to sway his opinion, they needed to listen to him. Harold considered for a few moments and then answered low and steadily. ¡°The strike team had support, far beyond what we have seen from the Reform before this, as I have said. There were six bodies that we still have not been able to identify, but thought leads us to them not being from Yeley, so offworlders. They had structure, a plan and experience to carry it out. They were not alone in this. With everything happening on the Lotus and reports of a Dorlec ship within the system, we must assume that Victoria knows more than we do and that she is responding to what she knows, hence her eagerness to make planetfall. All evidence leads to the Dorlec¡¯s hand in this, even in Yelean Reform, which has garnered more support than we would have thought possible in such a short amount of time¡± ¡°The regulations didn''t come from the Dorlec, Harold,¡± said Eher, listening carefully. ¡°No, which means that the decision has been made by the Houses at a whole, this will be a larger strategy of the Autarch, perhaps happening across the galaxy with independent worlds. We have seen that news from Yeley to the rest of the Galaxy has been sparse in the last year¡± he looked up, ¡°We have been taken out of the public view, pushed to a corner so that they may act¡± Pac had an empty feeling in his stomach, his heart was aching. His words were harsh, delivered carefully and respectfully, but he and his wife both knew. ¡°Yeley will be taken by the Houses. It is the only reason that I can see that Sonny would be barred from entry. His presence here would deter any House¡± The room went quiet for a time, only the subtle rush of the flowing water over Det¡¯em¡¯s hands could be heard from their patio. He looked out of the patio, knowing that the city below now had people willing to engulf them, to consume them whole, for a purpose that they didn''t understand, for a strategy made with them as pawns, but they would feel like liberators, walking directly into servitude. Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ¡°What do we do?¡± she said, which brought a great sigh from the old man, Shilu behind him shuffled uneasily. Pac was sure that Harold had not discussed this with her previously, but she had been around him long enough to learn his thinking, she would have understood to a fine detail where this conversation was going. Harold pulled from his pocket a small coin on a leather cord, ¡°They were delivered to us with reason¡± he said placing the coin onto the table, ¡°We have already seen that they are capable of protecting her¡­¡± he lowered his head as Pac was about to say something but decided not to, ¡°In retrospect, their timing of arrival is now suspicious, they arrived right before the attack was coming, and just preceding reports of the Dorlec arriving. I initially assumed that the Dorlec were here for them, and counted on our protection from Sonny to stop them from coming, but with everything that has happened, it seems that I was wrong¡± ¡°We are not just going to allow our world to be taken¡± said Pac leaning forward and placing his hand on the table. He was trying to control his anger, his anger at his own mismanagement of the situation. ¡°You saw our people stand up against the attackers, citizens defending the Traes¡± said Eher, ¡°We will not let this narrative of our fall determine it¡± Harold nodded solemnly once more, ¡°They will come, even if it takes years, but I believe that it will be shorter than that. We have the Suns Rising Festival coming and the promise of Grasci¡¯s speech, that fuel will be used, it will be the agitant that can catalyse into chaos. We must make preparations for Olivia¡± he said looking at the coin once more. Again the room fell to silence, a heavy understanding hanging over the room, an acceptance of a sour truth. ¡°What will you do?¡± said Pac, his forefinger once more rubbing his forehead. ¡°I am already making my way here¡± * Meno started to come to consciousness and felt his body ache as he shifted in the very slightest of ways. He felt stiff, and bruised, and heard people around him speaking, ¡°Yes, but he kept on turning his shield on and off thinking that they wouldn''t be able to see him. Those helmets can through practically anything¡± Angie said derisively. It took Meno a while to figure out what she was saying but caught Paba¡¯s words as she loudly spoke, ¡°What an idiot¡± followed by a giggle. ¡°Oi,¡± he said weakly, hearing his own voice. He opened one eye and felt the full impact of the splitting headache that he had. His shoulder and stomach felt swollen and hot, and he could feel that he had patches all over his body. ¡°Ah, finally¡± he heard Angie¡¯s voice over him, more gentle now, ¡°How do you feel?¡± he wanted to say something but his body felt to be lagging behind his thoughts for a moment and he nodded, which was a horrible idea and make his head feel awful. He let out a moan instead. He opened his eyes fully, blinking to ease the light rushing in, and saw Angie peering down at him with a caring look that somehow looked strange on her. She was wearing a vest and had a patch on her arm, a tiny red dot of blood seeping through, otherwise, she looked alright. Paba was in the corner and was still wearing the same clothes that she had been while in the glider, she was wearing her usual bravado, but Meno could see that she was happy he was okay. ¡°Olivia?¡± he said suddenly having everything that had happened hit him all at once, he tried to sit up and felt a stabbing pain in his stomach and had thankfully been stopped from getting up completely by Angie who held his chest. ¡°She¡¯s fine, she¡¯s fine. You did a hell of a job saving her out there¡± Meno felt a sense of relief wash over him as she said it, but thought immediately of Angie, ¡°And you, your arm?¡± ¡°Got grazed by a bullet, nothing more. It¡¯s you that we were worried about¡­¡± ¡°Yeah you tried to stop laser beams with your body, idiot¡± said Paba walking over and standing next to him, she didn''t have the height to loom over him like Angie did. He looked at his stomach for the first time, now remembering being shot, and checked his shoulder after, remembering that he wasn''t able to lift it moments before he had passed out. ¡°You¡¯re going to be fine, no lasting damage I hear, which is a bloody miracle, considering that you got hit with a beam twice. I thought your arm was done for if I¡¯m honest. The doctors said you will be up and about in a day or two, they have good kit here¡± she said thinking it was strange. ¡°We need to talk about your shield management¡± she said seriously, he nodded and her look of worry intensified. They ran him through everything that had happened, and what the aftermath of the attack had meant. According to Angie, they had lost two guards during the attack and Efreet had taken a pulse blast to the chest but had valiantly continued fighting, which Angie in particular seemed to be impressed with. They had seen the Kryptea arrive on their side of the glider too, and he had swept through a number of attackers, cruelly ending them before they could organise an attack, before making his way back to Meno¡¯s side. ¡°How crazy is that guy?¡± Meno said remembering him taking out the three guards before saving him in the end. He had walked straight through those flames to kill the one soldier. Meno knew that they had tougher skin, and muscles from their training, which pushed all of their energy into the body, hardening it, but it was more than that, the ease with which he dodged the shots being taken at him, and the power in each of his strikes. He, unfortunately, hadn''t managed to keep his admiration out of his voice and received a look of disapproval from Paba, The Yeleans that had joined had apparently rallied in a parallel street and had started moving toward them using whatever tools they could to combat the attackers before being armed by the guards fighting by the glider. Olivia had broken down in tears while thanking them which Angie said was a very touching moment in which the crowd began to cheer her name. Paba described it as a great bit of PR. ¡°How were you, Paba?¡± ¡°I was fine¡± ¡°An absolute mess, looked like a cat that was caught in a hurricane¡± Angie said with a smile at the same time, ¡°But she held it together well, and made sure that Lady Olivia was fine which was good¡± she added kindly, ¡°I shouldn''t have been in a situation like that in the first place, I am delicate¡± she said tossing her nose up. Meno chuckled thinking that there was nothing delicate about her. The Traes had apparently been furious and had sent nearly the entire Palace guard into the city once it was picked up on the scanners that their glider had gone down and had ordered the guard, as well as the forces within the city of Det¡¯er and the other cities on Yeley like Lofel and Froej to wear full exo-suits at all times, including helmets, which had obviously put everyone on edge. The news had been running constant discussions of who was to blame, with some even saying that this was the fault of the Traes for not addressing the issues and allowing people to be pushed so far. ¡°Most people know that this was Grasci, but nobody can prove anything, and that story is being suppressed by the looks of it¡± said Angie shaking her head. ¡°The general feeling is that something big is coming, and the Suns Rising Festival is becoming a big talking point. Grasci has said that he will be speaking during the celebrations, and the Traes haven¡¯t made a public response yet¡± ¡°Which is obviously being gobbled up by the media¡± added Paba. ¡°So it¡¯s a mess¡± said Meno, looking out of the window, seeing the glow of light raised just above the city, it seemed so peaceful now, but under that glow, it must have been a seething nest of paranoia and fear. ¡°So what do we do now?¡± he said knowing that Angie would be considering leaving Yeley, but he didn''t want to do that, he had grown attached to the place, and to Liv, and they didn''t know what the galaxy outside of Yeley would have waiting for them. Angie looked at him with a different look than he had expected though, it was almost strained, Paba picking up on this decided to answer, ¡°The Traes have invited us to join them for dinner when you are discharged, they want to thank us for our efforts¡± ¡°And from what Harold said, it¡¯s not something that we can turn down¡± Angie added, the strain becoming more apparent. Meno nodded, feeling anxious about the meeting, and feeding off of Angie¡¯s energy about it, Paba even looked concerned. The act of inviting them wasn''t strange, but it seemed that from their reactions, this was not delivered to them as an act of generosity, but likely something that would once again determine their path, regardless of their wishes. He eventually needed to tell them to go to sleep, as their heads dropped from exhaustion, and conversation repeated, the hours ticking away discussing and speculating everything that had happened and what was going to happen. They begrudgingly agreed through yawns and Meno saw them off, ¡°We¡¯ll be here first thing in the morning¡± Paba said with an heir of concern that he had never seen from her before. It was almost like they would choose anything besides being separated at the moment, but he waved her off and told her that he would be fine and wished them a good night''s sleep. He rested his head back down on the pillow and looked up at the ceiling, preparing himself to run through all of this in his head without other opinions for a moment when he heard a familiar voice, ¡°I mean it¡¯s just fucking adorable how close you have all become¡± Meno jumped up, felt the stabbing pain run through his entire body and saw Worrec sitting on a chair in the corner of the room, with a smug look on his face, ¡°You look like shit by the way,¡± he added sardonically. Chapter 14: Philidor Shappard sat in front of the enormous viewport of his office, with his back turned away from his desk, his hands clasped together as he looked in the far distance to the spec of green that was Yeley. He had been in this position for what felt like hours now. He had seen him, the boy from Gol on the footage from the attack on the streets of Gol. He was there, and he was with former Captain Lawrence as well, protecting Lady Olivia. Shappard wondered how they had found themselves in a position like that, how is that they had been in the presence of the planetary head''s daughter? if they had just made their way to Yeley, they would be hiding. Surely? He shifted in his chair, clearly, there was something else at play here, someone else who was moving them around and had placed them under the protection of the Traes. It was the only thing that made any sense. That person may complicate the taking of Yeley. They would need to be cautious in their movements going forward. There was a game being played that they did not have visibility on, and one false step could mean a move that was in the control of their enemy. Sheppard cracked his knuckles. The attack hadn¡¯t gone completely to plan, but they would adapt, as the Dorlec always did, and there was an opportunity now to gain more than he had previously thought possible. With the fall of the Traes they would facilitate the capture of seven independent plants within the region for the Autarch, and with the boy, Meno on the planet, Sheppard would also deliver the only known person immune to the HX-31 disease to his House Head. This would give the Dorlec the ability to synthesise a vaccine that could allow their troops to enter worlds that they had infected, thus easing the capture. Their enemies would be helpless in the face of the disease, and the Dorlec would rip through them. They had taken people from Gol previously to be used as walking bioweapons, though Sheppard had only seen reports of this, and it hadn''t happened for a number of years. The people taken from Gol had also only been used on ships, to create infection among the compliment and annihilate threats while they travelled, but with the boy, they could eliminate planets that held any type of threat. ¡°They are ready for you, Commander,¡± said Smik from behind Sheppard. He could tell that he was bowing from the sound of his voice. Always diligent, he thought. He spun on his chair, prepared himself and then nodded to Smik, who turned as two holograms appeared before his desk. One was a large man, with a bald head and a thick black moustache wearing Traes colours. Moran had a stern look, a defence mechanism thought Sheppard, the defence of a man who had bottled an operation. He cleared his throat as Sheppard became visible to him. He still would not greet Sheppard as a superior, some form of defiance about him even in his betrayal of the Traes. Almost commendable, if it wasn''t for the fact that he had sold out his planet. The second man was more aligned with the Dorlec aesthetic, though not as clear-cut. He was in his forties, with neatly parted greying hair, with a smug coolness about him. Expected from a professor with a following like his. Grasci wore a neat suit, carefully chosen not to appear too ostentatious, nor to make him look poor and ill-suited to it. A crafted exterior and presence. He looked across to Moran with disdain. Sheppard noticed that Moran did not respond in any way, ¡°Commander Shappard,¡± said the professor with a silky voice, composed, educated. ¡°Commander,¡± said Moran with a short nod and rough voice, expected of a soldier. Sheppard smiled at how the defiant nature collapsed as soon as he looked to be upstaged. However, this soldier was a glorified security guard and Sheppard doubted whether he had ever seen real action. ¡°Thank you for joining me, gentlemen. In light of the failed operation today, I thought it best to align and adjust accordingly¡± he said with cool composure. He felt it was important to highlight the attack as a failure, to ensure an added effort moving forward. The operation was not designed to kill, nor capture Olivia Traes, but to create an environment where Moran could swoop in with his guard and save her while being heavy-handed with the public. His guards would kill some bystanders, and some innocents and give Grasci the opportunity to use the now ¡®cruel¡¯ acts of the Traes guard as ammunition against the family on the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival. The loss of the attacking soldiers was inconsequential. They had been the squad that had failed him on Gol. A fitting disposal. ¡°What did happen, Moran?¡± said Grasci, a sinister curl to his lip, once again looking over to the hologram of the Palace Commander, who took a breath in, seeming to understand that he needed to run through this, regardless of they may think of him. ¡°The Kryptea did not follow his orders, he was too quick in his response to the attackers. The guests of the Traes also¡­ proved themselves better than we expected in a firefight¡± he said sharply, offering nothing else. ¡°Really, Moran? The Kryptea didn''t follow his orders? A weak excuse if I have ever heard one¡± the professor said beratingly, but then composed himself and looked at the Commander once more, ¡°These guests, have caused quite a stir among my supporters. From my understanding, they were meant to be visiting in a political manner, but now they seem to be hardened soldiers. A rather awful estimation on your side, Commander Moran¡± The Traes Commander harumphed, ¡°The woman was a soldier, a former Luitenet within the Hulfean fleet before moving to a Dorlec commission where she attained the rank of Captain. The boy was trained by one of her compatriots¡± added Sheppard, ¡°Though after reviewing the footage, he does seem more capable than I would have thought possible. ¡± both of them looked at Sheppard with that wondrous amazement trying to understand how he would know this, he wouldn''t explain. ¡°You should have detailed these guests further when they first arrived, I will take part of the blame there for not digging further, but variables must be considered carefully before attempting to balance the equation¡± he said as a lesson, echoing the words of Lord Valentine, who uttered sentences like this with an ease that Sheppard did not quite possess¡­yet. ¡°The boy is of special interest, Moran, I would like him captured during the siege,¡± Sheppard said allowing his tone to have an heir of unquestionability. ¡°So, we move ahead as planned?¡± Shappard looked at Grasci, he had become smug in his fame, in his role as acting as opposition to a planetary head. It was only at the grace of Lord Valentine that he had a voice, and now he used it with such a tone, as though he was more than a pawn. Sheppard dropped the thought, how would a man like this know that he was just that, a pawn when he had been given such a lofty platform? Hubris always clouds judgment. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. ¡°Adjustments have been made. Media outlets will play their role, the people will begin to question the Planetary head''s ability to protect the people in light of his own guard''s failure¡± he watched Moran shift irritatedly with the words, ¡°Professor, you will still speak at the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival, your focus will not change, but ensure that it is a knife that is twisted, not just thrust. Understood?¡± ¡°Perfectly,¡± he said, his lip curling once more. ¡°Moran, there will be an attack on the Temple on the day of the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival, ensure that there is a clear path to the planetary heads for our intruders, you have the Kryptea, use them effectively, you could not ask for a better resource. It is imperative that we seize the temple and intercept any defence that may be made against us. Two more Dorlec Pillars will arrive to quell any resistance in other regions. I want this attack to be swift, smooth and above all, without response. We have turned the eye of the galaxy away from Yeley, you may act as needed, but do not draw any attention to the Dorlec while doing so¡± ¡°Three Pillars for a planet,¡± said Grasci, ¡°That will be quite a feat, Commander Sheppard¡± ¡°Your planet is a farm, Professor¡± Sheppard said with a sharp dismissive tone, which to his pleasure, cut through the fog of his arrogance, even if just for a moment. ¡°Of course, Commander,¡± he said with a slow tip of his head forward. ¡°What of the guests, Sheppard?¡± said Moran seeming to find disgust with Grasci. ¡°You have your orders on the boy, do what you will with the former Captain, she is of no concern¡± ¡°And the pilot?¡± ¡°What pilot?¡± ¡°Paba Rebapa, the pilot that brought them, she is still in the temple¡± Sheppard sighed heavily. This man was an imbecile. How was he only letting them know about this now? The pilot is still with them? Sheppard knew that the boy must have escaped on the ship, but he had never been sure if he had taken the ship himself or whether a pilot was waiting for him. Only now, had this ridiculous excuse for a Commander decided to hand that information over. ¡°Send me everything that you have on this pilot, and I will let you know how to proceed¡± he said with exaggerated irritation. ¡°Now, follow the plan, we have two weeks until the festival, Grasci ensure that your people are sufficiently incentivised for the attack. Moran, give them the incentive¡± They both nodded firmly and the holograms dissipated. He sat for a moment looking over his desk contemplating the pilot. It couldn''t have been the pilot, he thought. The ship had left before his soldiers walked into the town. Someone else was still involved in this, but he had nothing that he could clench on to discover their identity. The pilot could potentially be a key in unlocking that though, surely they would know, they had been a part of that plan. Regardless, it was close now, soon he would be taking a planet in the name of the Dorlec, in the name of Lord Valentine, soon he would be standing higher than he had stood before, his ascent was close, with his actions he would carry out the orders of the Autarch himself. His name would be honoured, he would win favour with Lord Valentine, and he would be attaining true prominence. * Liv watched her father slowly pace around the room, her mother watching him with a furrowed brow of worry that rested above her red still puffy eyes. It was the first time that Liv had been able to sit across from her mother without her needing to be held by her, which had allowed her a sense of relief, though, if holding Liv had made her mother feel better, she would oblige. She could understand her parent''s concern for her, and she had initially needed comfort from them. She sat on one of the large sofa¡¯s in her parent''s apartments with a large blanket wrapped around her. The fire in the corner was not needed for heating but added to the warmth that she and her parents both needed. Her father was contemplating whether the Prelude Gala should go ahead like it had every year as the premier event for the heads of regions and major players on Yeley where the message for The Sun¡¯s Rising Festival was dictated. The strategy for the coming year would be laid out and the alignment of the planet was brought together. It was usually the most coveted invite of the year for members of the Yelean elite and stakeholders. ¡°Would we not look like we are running from Reform if we cancelled?¡±, Liv had considered this while the silence fell in the room just the sound of her father''s soft material shoes shifting across the floor and the crackling of the fire. Her own attack was being cast as the reason not to have the event, but she also knew that if they folded at this, they would be showing weakness at a time when they needed to convey strength. Grasci was going to speak. Liv had made her opinion clear, she believed that the event needed to take place, the Traes needed to be visible, Liv needed to show that she had not been rattled, and her parents needed to assert their position as planetary heads at a time when the Yelean people were in a position for the first time in generations, to consider their leadership. Her father stopped pacing and looked at her with a heavy expression, he took a deep breath, ¡°Will you speak at the summit?¡± she felt her mother''s eyes flick to her immediately, uneasiness resting in them, ¡°Of course,¡± Liv said without hesitation, ¡°I would be happy to¡± she added now considering the importance of this. She would need to convey that she was thankful to the people and that she would still stand up even when facing difficulty, she needed to show this to the people of Yeley, and also to her parents. This was an opportunity for her to raise herself to the position of a Traes. She had already invited Angie, Paba and Meno to the event, though she may have underplayed the magnitude of the event by calling it a dinner, she was speaking to Angie at the time, and though she had always been kind and amiable, Liv still found her quite intimidating. She knew that this would come back on her, but she had immediately thought it important to give them a presence at the event after their efforts during the attack. Her parents had agreed, and even Harold, who had primarily been concerned with their safety, had felt that hiding them away after the attack would be a foolish move. ¡°Are you sure about this?¡± her mother said softly, ¡°Yes,¡± she said trying to convey the strength that her parents needed, ¡°Our people need to know that we are strong, that we will not be swayed by him¡±, her mother gave her a cracked smile showing pride. She felt that it might have been a bit much, but she felt as though this was a true chance to stand against Reform, something that they had played down for so long. She watched her father nod slowly, she could see that he did not want to make this decision but knew that it was right. Her mother reached out and gripped her hand, squeezing it. ¡°There¡¯s one more thing that I think that we should do,¡± she said strongly, emboldened by her new responsibility, her parents both turned intently to her, she thought it would be best just to say it, knowing that they would both find this a deplorable idea. ¡°I would like to invite Professor Grasci,¡± * Angie got to their apartments, her hand on the back of Paba who was almost asleep already as they walked from Meno¡¯s medical room, she had been directing her from the lifts. They arrived at the door and saw a small paper envelope sitting on a small table outside of the door of their apartments. She picked it up carefully, examined it, and rubbed the paper in her hands, unable to stop a small smile from coming to her face as she felt the texture of the grainy envelope. She had never felt paper before, it was a strange thing. She knew that the elite used paper as a way to show off their wealth and class, and the poorest used it because they could not connect to systems, but she had never been in a position where she had actually held paper. Paba looked up at it and watched Angie pass it over her hands, ¡°What is it?¡± she said in a sleepy tone, It was addressed to all three of them, and she broke the wax seal that had the mark of the Traes upon it, an image like the statue of Det¡¯er that she was now so familiar with. It was an invite to the Prelude Gala, directly from the Traes themselves, happening in two days. She closed her eyes tightly, knowing that this was the ¡®dinner¡¯ that Lady Olivia had invited them to as an offer of appreciation. She had done this on purpose, she had waited for Angie to find out this way rather than tell her herself, ¡°Oh that little bitch¡± Chapter 15: Play the Part: ¡°Now, when you open the door for her, do you place your other hand behind your back, or do you hold it out to the side?¡± he said analysing the hologram as he watched the guard repeat the action over and over again and watched Olivia Traes step through the door before him. She thanked him every time. ¡°You are most welcome,¡± he said, emulating the guard on the hologram, ¡°Why can¡¯t you just nod?¡± he said looking over at the tied-up man, still struggling at his bindings as he sat on a chair in the sparse guards'' quarters, but he had quite a few possessions, a bit more cramped with items than he was used to. He thought that Ko could not see him doing this, but honestly, it was just a bit desperate now. ¡°You are most welcome,¡± he said again trying to match the guard''s tone. He leaned back on the chair, ¡°You are most welcome. You are very formal, aren''t you?¡± he said to the guard who just moaned through the muffle in his mouth. Ko checked the time, it was three AM, he rubbed his eyes, it may have been three on this planet, but he had been awake going on thirty-six hours now. The hours on Yeley were seventeen more than the last planet he was on and to avoid any disorientation he had decided to stay awake. He would need a booster. ¡°You are most welcome¡± The man struggled more, but Ko didn''t pay him much attention, he rummaged around the guard room for some form of booster, naturally, he was not permitted to bring anything with him on this mission. They always needed to make it harder for him, always, like a bloody agenda, he thought. Eventually, he pulled a drawer and found a tub containing blue and yellow capsules, ¡°Bingo¡± he pulled them out and allowed his recently acquired tech to scan them, they were exactly what he was looking for, go pills, the tech displayed onto his eye recommended a daily use of one, he took three of them, they weren''t on the same level as the ones that he was used to, so he figured that it was fine. He then moved to the window which with the backdrop of night created a perfect mirror. He stretched his long neck showing the underside of his chin, it had always been noted as sharp, he had always wished for ¡®strong¡¯ or distinguished, but it had been plainer than most of his previous appearances. Ordinary, his eyes were brown, and his hair was straight and dull blonde this time. He did have a sharp nose, but small which allowed for prosthetics to be easily applied, he detested his plainness, but it allowed him to slip in and out without being noticed. A gift, he was told at the academies in the core. Made to be forgettable. ¡°You are most welcome¡± he turned to the man sitting on his chair once more, looking at his frame and then to the hologram, ¡°You don¡¯t stand dead straight do you? You have the look of a man that has practised being a good soldier, but your more of a fighter than just a guard, arent you?¡± he said looking at the soldier, his fury was burning through his eyes. ¡°No,¡± said Ko, watching those gleaming eyes, ¡°No, they picked you because you are nifty in a fight, good in a pinch, and then you practised being a good guard, practised standing right, walking right, speaking right¡± he did feel bad taunting him like this, but seeing a man''s true nature was the best way to know what their contained nature was, what it was that they wanted to hide, what is was that they pulled themselves back from being their true self. This man''s true self was a fighter, he would place himself in danger without hesitation, not because it was his duty but because it was the right thing to do. Admirable, Ko appreciated men with codes, a code was a far better way to live one''s life than duty, duty was always imposed by another, always modified to correctness, filtered by acceptability. ¡°You are most welcome¡± he was getting it now, the deeper tone, with the accent. He turned to the hologram again and moved to another video of his walk, strong gait, he thought, wide shoulders, aware. ¡°You trust your eyes more than what the helmet tells you, that¡¯s good, helmets can be hacked,¡± he said still looking at the monitor, but delivering it like it was a lesson for the guard for next time. ¡°You also nod slowly when you walk past fellow soldiers, you respect them but also know that you are offering them approval when doing so, short nods are acknowledgement, long are approval,¡± he said turning to the guard smiling and nodding his head slowly, ¡°By all accounts, you are a very good man and a good guard,¡± he said with a wink that nearly drove Efreet berserk. ¡°If it is any consolation to you, I am not here to harm anyone, intentionally at least. You are most welcome¡±. He stood and practised the gait, it was difficult to try and get his height right and the gait, as he was slightly taller than Ko. He walked and then viewed himself in the mirror again, he may need to pad the exo-suit. He pulled the medical kit and grabbed the straps used for holding patients to trolleys, ¡°Old school¡± he said, they would work perfectly. He placed them on his shoulders and then pulled the exo-suit on, they were tedious, but he couldn''t have gotten any luckier than a temple with helmeted guards. That didn''t happen much any more, even after attacks, but Pac Traes had delivered the orders, and now Ko had a way to be in the temple, at all times. Unfiltered access, it was a mistake by someone who has only heard about how to play but hasn¡¯t been part of a game yet. He practised his walk again and saw that the straps had done the job for him. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. ¡°How do you behave with the Kryptea, they freak me out man¡± Ko swiped at the hologram until he got to a frame where the Kryptea were in the same hallway, ¡°See, I knew it, you walk between whoever you are guarding and the Kryptea, what a guy¡± he also bolstered his chest when doing so, but Ko didn''t think this was a conscious act, he wasn''t trying to prove anything to the Kryptea, rather he was readying himself, ¡°So you dont like them either,¡± he said contemplatively. He worked in the room reviewing more footage, measuring his interactions with different ranks within the guard, he noticed that he stood straighter and at the most attention to the Commander as well as one of the other guards who protected the advisor, Harold, it was not a surprise, and he wasn''t looking for a promotion, he was proud of the job he was doing. Moran was the Commander, he checked up on the data pad, ¡°And you deeply respect¡­¡± he said looking at the datapad once more, ¡°Shilu Salfour¡± he said looking at the hologram again, ¡°Hulfean name, it seems that you like her but you don¡¯t speak with her while on duty that much. Thank you for that¡± the less interactions he would need to make in a personal capacity, the better. His head was always more slightly bowed when the Regent or his wife were in the room and stood closer to a wall if their guards were in the room, so he relinquished control to more senior guards, then there was the kid, he seemed to have a different demeanour around him, more comfortable, the Planetary Head¡¯s daughter seemed at ease with him too. The information on the datapad about him was also bogus, all entered on the same day. This must have been him, and that must be the Captain Angela Lawrence, and the pilot Paba Rebapa. Ko watched the holograms with the three as they moved around the temple, with Lady Olivia Traes and the guard. They were being protected, they were being taken care of with apartments, clothes, food, and facilities. He needed to be wary of the soldier, he could just see that she was a soldier, and her movements screamed it. He blew out his cheeks as he watched the hologram of the battle in the street. The guard behind him had been hit with a pulse blast and she stepped right into the role of commanding the troops. It showed that she was experienced, but the fact that the other guards followed her was worrying to Ko. The smaller one, Paba Rebapa, seemed an interesting case. From all the footage that he had, she was moving in and out of private areas and speaking with technical teams. It seemed she had a different level of access to the others. It was difficult to see what she was dealing with, but whatever it was it seemed to be making an impact, judging by the expressions from the people that she was interacting with. He would need to try and figure out what that was all about. He moved over to the Kryptea files, Archon, Laken and 6, the number, not the word, it wasn''t a name it was still his designation. They were being protected by a Kryptea that hadn''t taken a name yet? He pulled up the numbers file. Kryptea were given numbers while they were being trained, from their lots when imported to Lacedon, after they were sent into the wilderness and told to survive for years, they were put into fights and then took names, so why did this Kryptea still only have his number designation? His file showed him to be the largest of the group, he had a disciplinary record which was unusual to see, and by all accounts, he was not a very good Kryptea soldier. They get Kryptea in to defend them, and one-third of them is a dud. ¡°Nothing here makes sense,¡± he said to the guard who was still glaring at him, but he appreciated the company. The other two, the woman, Archon had two stripes, senior, proven, she would be a headache if she found him, it was the same for Laken the other male, also two stripes, both full citizens of Lacedon. He counted his lucky stars that they only had two stripes, ¡°The Traes got stitched up with these three, I¡¯m telling you, I would be pissed¡± his voice was coming along, he saw that the guard had also noticed this, and he smiled at the look of glaring he was getting from the man. It always happened when he was taking someone''s identity, their fear only grew as he started to sound and move more like them. He looked at the time again and saw that it was just past five, time to start getting ready for his shift. He looked over to the guard and made a forced smile, ¡°I know that you are going to hate me for this and that you dont trust what I am saying, but you can trust this, friend, you dont want to be part of what is going to happen to this place¡± he drew out a med patch from the med pack and scanned it with the tech, it was perfect, ¡°I¡¯ve adjusted this for five days, it¡¯s going to knock you out, and when you wake up, your ties will be off, that is when you can come and get me, got it?¡± he said earnestly, ¡°I¡¯ll be with the Traes, in their apartments¡± he finished with a smile. He placed the med patch on the guard''s neck and said to him before his eyes closed. Now the guard knew where he would be, and where to go once he woke up. ¡°I¡¯m going to use your quarters until then¡±. Ko sat on the bed and looked at the guard who was now passed out on the chair in front of him. He thought through his exit strategy. He had placed a bomb in the temple when he had first come in, it was on the second floor and he touched the control for it on his wrist. The Traes armoury was sadly not protected like it should have been. They never should have had a bomb like that in the temple in the first place, but he also needed to stop questioning these small victories. The bomb was now armed. He looked back up at the guard, now peacefully asleep, only being held up by his bonds. He would place the man on the bed and give him nutrient packs. He released the bonds that held the guard, lay down on the bed, put himself in a comfortable position, and then feeling the tech in his chest heat up he lifted his hand and with the familiar action, twisted his wrist, flicking his fingers, at once, he and Efreet swapped positions and Ko watched from the chair as Efreet¡¯s limp hand dropped onto his chest, the guard now quietly sleeping on the bed. He linked up the nutrient pack and made his way to the mirror again, ensuring that he looked right once he placed the Traes helmet on. It looked correct. He would need to be at Olivia Traes¡¯ door shortly. ¡°You are most welcome¡± he practiced once more. It was time to go to work. Chapter 16: The Calm: Liv had seen it. During the attack, when she was in the glider, she¡¯d watched Meno break away from the other soldiers, positioning himself on the opposite side, close to where the Kryptea stood. She saw him fight against the soldiers, but one moment haunted her: a burst of laser fire should have hit Meno square in the chest. He hadn¡¯t reacted in time, hadn¡¯t moved fast enough, yet the beam didn¡¯t strike him. Instead, it glanced off, bending just above his shoulder. His expression said it all¡ªhe¡¯d expected it to hit, too. That moment replayed over and over in her mind, the light bending away from its target. Meno had deflected energy. ¡°So?¡± Liv said to Angie, who was examining her with a calm, steady gaze. Paba was watching them both intently in the temple¡¯s atrium, where leaving the walls was now prohibited. ¡°Could he be a Sha-En?¡± Liv whispered, noting the Kryptea standing in the garden¡¯s corner, leaning against the stone wall with his eyes closed. Though his head was bowed, he made the guards uneasy; they shifted uncomfortably, keeping him in sight. Realizing she¡¯d mentioned the Sha-En¡ªa name that could provoke hostility from his people¡ªLiv leaned in closer to Angie and Paba. ¡°Could he?¡± Angie¡¯s eyes shifted to the guards surrounding the room, all helmeted and in full exo-suits after her father''s orders. Paba was also looking at Angie with a questioning look, needing an answer from the only person who had been around Sha-En before. She admitted to Liv earlier that she didn''t know enough about the Sha-En and that they should speak to Angie about it. Meno had asked them not to come through in the morning, but rather meet them somewhere with his comms, which Paba noted that he was still terrible at using, stating that he just, ¡®didn''t like it¡¯. They had taken his word though and had met up in the morning in the apartments, but with the stuffy and stifled atmosphere in the temple, longed for some fresh air. ¡°Honestly, I dont know,¡± she said with her usual analytical stare even when answering questions, ¡°Why are you so sure that he is Sha-En?¡± she carefully added, ¡°Because they are the only ones that could do something like that, right? They could manipulate energy itself, not just use it as a source of power for tech or abilities. I can never see any threads on him, it¡¯s like he has no power at all, and you said it yourself; He should never be able to fight someone toe-to-toe who has tech, and we saw him win against those soldiers. You have to admit, it fits¡± she said in hurried, hushed tones. Angie looked at her and Paba, ¡°Are you putting this in her head?¡± she said to Paba, but Liv could see that Angie was also thinking it through herself. Paba lifted her hands in the air, ¡°I dont know anything about this stuff, but you have to admit Angie, he is¡­different¡± ¡°To be honest my Lady, Primer abilities can manifest in a number of ways, you could be a Sha-En with your abilities to see energy, but it doesn''t necessarily make him one. I¡¯ll admit¡± she said ignoring Paba and taking in a breath, ¡°His physical abilities for someone who doesn''t have tech are on another level, but he was also trained by a man who was fascinated with the Kryptea, you might not be able to see his energy because he is similar to¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s not it,¡± said Liv frustratedly, looking up to the Kryptea who had closed his eyes once more into that near meditative state that he seemed to be acting he was in. She saw his threads, and yes, they were closer to his body than a primer, wrapping tightly around his skin, dark purple, near-black threads that moved slowly around him in his calm state. His control was worse than the other Kryptea, his was more visible, stretching out further from his skin than the others, but he was the most junior she knew. ¡°I can see Kryptea energy, with Meno, the most I have ever seen is like the glimmer or shimmering that you can see above a fire, no threads, no tangible structure,¡± she said rubbing her fingers together trying to find a way to explain it. She knew from her lessons with Harold that the Sha-En could manipulate energy itself, shifting it into any form they required as needed. This made them dangerous in the eyes of the Houses, that they could use energy to create whatever they needed. It differed from the usual manipulation that pushed energy into a signature to get a desired result. The signature, whether that be from a person''s primer ability or tech, determined the result which was set. The Kryptea were unique in the way that they operated, pushing all of their energy into their bodies, strengthening every cell, making their skin tougher, and their muscles stronger. They appeared differently, but she had also only ever heard of Sha-En abilities, and never seen them. If Meno was a Sha-En, he would be deemed a threat by the Houses. He would be hunted and locked away, or worse. ¡°So there is something?¡± said Paba searching for an understanding. Liv shifted uncomfortably knowing that she was not conveying what she had seen with the precision required, ¡°It¡¯s different¡± ¡°Does it matter that much, we know Meno. You aren¡¯t worried about, you know, him being dangerous or anything are you?¡± said Paba with a worried glance at Angie, ¡°It matters because the Sha-En are practically hunted down¡± said Liv in even more hushed tones, ¡°They are criminals and considered dangerous by the Houses, it was terrible what happened to their House, but most people now look back at that as something that prevented a worse situation, even if they don¡¯t say it,¡± Angie scoffed, but Liv knew that this wasn''t because she didn''t believe her, but because that was a foolish belief to hold. ¡°The Eshara and the stories of the Jinn have given them a bad name. The Sha-En weren¡¯t criminals, and the ones that are left are probably just trying to survive¡± Liv knew that both the Sha-En and the Eshara had been painted with the same brush as both of them had been part of the Masma empire under the god emperor Bel, but where people knew about the Eshara being criminals, the mystery surrounding the Sha-En¡¯s strange use of energy and the fact that they had no formal planet, empire, leader, made people nervous about them. The Jinn was different, if even real. Liv knew that the stories made the Jinn out to be a spectre that brought death and destruction. ¡°I just don¡¯t want him to be in danger,¡± she said with a great sigh. Angie smiled at her, ¡°We will protect him, Livvy¡± said Paba with a wink, which made Liv chortle, ¡°He tends to run into anything dangerous as fast as he possibly can,¡± ¡°Yeah, he¡¯s an idiot, but he¡¯s our idiot,¡± she said gripping Liv¡¯s hand, and even Angie seemed to find this a warming gesture. ¡°Who¡¯s an idiot?¡± said Meno walking into the room with a guard close behind, guilt flushing her cheeks as she took in the sight of him, his arm in a sling ¡°You are!¡± said Paba also bouncing up in jubilation, giving him a big hug, ¡°Angie¡¯s been so worried,¡± she added with a sniff. ¡°Paba, he¡¯s injured,¡± Angie chided., The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. ¡°No really, I¡¯m fine,¡± he said lifting his arm in the sling while holding Paba with his other arm, ¡°I don¡¯t know how, but feels like new¡± ¡°We made sure that you had the best medical tech, and doctors, and my parents made sure that you were a priority when everyone came in. They should have given you medication, and patches to make sure that¡­¡± ¡°Thank you, Liv,¡± Meno said calmly as she threw all of the words over to him, ¡°I promise you that I am fine,¡± he said with a broad smile and an understanding look. She felt terrible that he had nearly died trying to protect her. She watched as he shared a look and a nod with Angie, which made Liv smile, it was more than she would have expected. They shared an odd relationship in Liv¡¯s eyes, but they seemed to have a closeness that didn''t require words. There was trust between them. There was a collective sigh of relief having him there, and some more brightness, as he laughed and joked about everything that had happened, somehow putting them at ease. Paba called him an idiot a few more times, and even Angie now had a small smile plastered to her face. ¡°Honestly, it was crazy, I don¡¯t think that I knew what was happening the whole time¡± he said ¡°I could tell,¡± said Paba, sassily, as though she retained full composure during the entire attack. Liv could still hear the squeals and whimpering from Paba while in the glider. Liv felt like a weight had been lifted off her chest, but occasionally they all noticed Meno glancing over at the Kryptea. Liv was eventually pulled aside by Efreet, telling her that her parents needed her, ¡°Making that helmet look good Efreet,¡± said Paba flirtatiously with a suggestive wink, ¡°Thanks,¡± said Efreet confidently, which surprised Liv. Efreet had been so uncomfortable with Paba¡¯s overly forward comments towards him. It seemed that Paba noticed this too, as she furrowed her brow slightly, and then looked a bit sad, like she had realised that her fun was now over. Liv smiled, she realised now that this was more a game for her than genuine interest. She recalled Paba telling her about her ex, Hal when they were at the river cafe. It was probably Paba¡¯s way of keeping distance from people while still engaging with them. It was difficult to know what Paba was actually thinking. She said her goodbyes to them and saw the Kryptea move away from the wall and make his way over. He had now been added permanently to Liv¡¯s private guard with Efreet, who had taken it well, perhaps a sense of confidence after seeing his competency during the attack. She noticed the other guards in the room now protecting Meno, Angie and Paba shifted uncomfortably as he walked across the atrium. Meno stood up, stood before the Kryptea and looked at the much taller soldier wearing only the beige cloth robes, he stopped at Meno and looked at him questioningly, ¡°I wanted to say thank you¡± said the smaller man looking up at him, ¡°And I wanted to ask if it was possible¡­¡± ¡°Meno,¡± Liv said, suddenly feeling that she had been so stupid to speak about Meno in front of this soldier. He smiled and waved her off, ¡°Can you train me?¡± he said after taking a breath and seemingly deciding to blurt it out. The Kryptea looked at him strangely, as though completely taken aback. The red-tanned soldier looked at Olivia, and before she could say anything Meno was facing her with a pleading look, ¡°Please¡± It was the look in his eye that made her consider it. The Kryptea was looking at Meno again with curiosity. She could see that Meno was asking genuinely, but she couldn''t understand why he would want to do something this¡­ridiculous, even for him. Angie was still and Paba looked in absolute disbelief now holding onto the pendant that she seemed to hold whenever she was uncomfortable. Liv blinked for a few moments looking at Meno and then looked at the Kryptea knowing that if she ordered it, he would need to do it. ¡°I will need to be present at all training,¡± she said and for the strangest second the Kryptea looked as though he softened for a moment, Meno swung to face her and thanked her. She didn''t know if it was from the guilt that she felt from him risking his own life for hers, or if it was just his ability to be so, Meno, that she allowed it, but she felt glad when she saw his face fill with joy. He turned to the Kryptea and held his hand out to him, ¡°I¡¯m Meno,¡± he said, and Liv remembered that this was the second time that he had tried to introduce himself to the soldier, who looked at his hand and then held out his own, ¡°I am 6,¡± he said in a low-toned voice, and Meno smiled wide. Liv saw that both Angie and Paba stood with their mouths open at the interaction. Even Paba who had just moments ago been scowling that Meno would even ask this, now seemed to stand in shock that the Kryptea was acting so¡­human? ¡°My Lady,¡± said Efreet from behind her, and she waved to the group with the Kryptea following her. Efreet held his arm out at the entrance and allowed her to pass through. ¡°Thank you, Efreet¡± ¡°You are most welcome¡± Meno watched as Liv left with Efreet and the Kryptea as they left the Atrium. There were only two guards left in the atrium and Meno decided that their apartments would be a better place to have this conversation. He beckoned them to follow him and they did it without hesitation as he led the way, ¡°What are you thinking?¡± said Paba in a hushed tone following him, ¡°A Kryptea? I know that you¡¯re an idiot, and I accept that Meno, but a Kryptea?¡± ¡°I¡¯ve never heard one speak,¡± said Angie with a smile of disbelief walking behind them. ¡°I¡¯ll explain everything, but in the rooms,¡± he said, not wanting to offer anything else with the guards around, especially with what he needed to discuss with them. They quickly made their way into the apartments and thanked the guards as they waited outside, with Paba occasionally bursting out with a scoff and ¡®A Kryptea?¡¯ ¡°What is it?¡± said Angie with concern as Meno turned after closing the door. ¡°I had a visitor last night,¡± he said, trying to prepare himself for what he was about to say. They both looked at him strangely, ¡°Worrec showed up as you left last night,¡± he said waiting to see their expressions and he could have anticipated exactly what they had done. Paba threw her hands into the air and spun around, Angie turned her head to the side and looked at him in utter confusion, ¡°A Krypytea, and Worrec. Meno, you''re killing me¡± ¡°Worrec, as in from Gol, Worrec?¡± said Angie watching Meno very carefully. ¡°Yes,¡± he said holding his one hand up but also lifting the arm in the sling, as it felt completely fine now, ¡°I know, I know, it¡¯s all very strange, he kind of explained it, but not quite prop¡­¡± ¡°He gave you a whole lot of bullshit and acted like it was a perfectly reasonable explanation,¡± said Paba nodding, ¡°Ah, yeah¡± ¡°You said that he wasn¡¯t wearing a suit on Gol, did he bring the disease here?¡± said Angie, ¡°No, he said that that isn''t a problem¡± ¡°I thought you said he was dead?¡± she said, and Meno could see that she was trying to recall everything that he and Paba had told her about him, ¡°I¡­also asked that, and he said that he¡¯s more complicated than that, but honestly that just seemed like Worrec speak for ¡®I''m never going to explain that¡¯, and he reminded me that he actually never said he was going to die. He said that this is a different version of the one that was on Gol¡± ¡°Honestly, he¡¯s the fucking worst,¡± said Paba with a deep sigh, ¡°What do you mean different version?¡± Angie blinked at Meno trying to understand what he was saying. ¡°It wasn''t a hallucination¡± he said to Angie thinking that she may wonder, she shook her head and held up her hand expressing that she wasn''t thinking that. ¡°I don¡¯t really know what¡¯s happening, and he didn''t really explain it, and his tattoos were different¡± Meno said shaking his head, his head still plagued by questions around him, ¡°What did he want?¡± said Angie flatly but with full focus, Meno took a moment before answering, looking between the two, now wondering if they would even believe him, ¡°He said that Yeley is going to fall and that the reason that he sent us was to get Liv out¡± There was a strange silence that fell in the room, it wasn''t an acceptance of what they had just heard, but almost as though they somehow already knew this, like they had some understanding that this was, of course, the reason that they were here. It was like they were now remembering something that they had been asked to do previously, and it had just slipped their minds. ¡°He¡¯s such an asshole,¡± said Paba wiping her hand over her eyes. Meno just kept looking at the two of them, Angie seemed to be deep in thought, ¡°Let me guess, he didn''t give you a plan, just said, do this ridiculously dangerous thing, it will be fine, I promise¡± she said in a mocking deep voice. ¡°Angie?¡± Meno said carefully as she wasn''t moving just thinking, ¡°What does he look like?¡± she said raising her head, ¡°Ah, tall, blonde-ish, well built, the first time I saw him he had tattoos on the left side of his neck and chest, this time he had the tattoos on the right-hand side,¡± Meno said, and then Angie immediately looked at Paba as though she should answer now, Paba was slightly taken aback but answered, ¡°Ah, yeah, pretty tall, blonde hair, wore it long, but I didn''t see any tattoos on his neck when I first met him, didn''t look the second time¡± she said looking at Angie questioningly, ¡°Do you know him?¡± ¡°No,¡± said Angie distractedly after a moment, ¡°Um, I¡¯ve heard of primers that can split themselves, be in two places at once, he could do something like that I suppose, maybe create mirror images of himself or¡­¡± she fell back into thought, ¡°What does he want us to do?¡± ¡°Angie?¡± Paba said questioningly, ¡°Stay close to Liv, he says that there are others here to get Liv out, but he doesn''t know where they are, we¡­¡± ¡°Typical¡± interjected Paba, ¡°Yeah, kind of¡± agreed Meno, ¡°He told me that he doesn''t know how it¡¯s going to happen and that the Traes aren''t going to leave, so we need to protect Liv. I think he meant during the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival. He didn''t say it, but he made it sound like it¡¯s all going to happen then and to be honest, that¡¯s what everyone is thinking right? He said that we needed to be ready, that¡¯s why I asked the Kryptea to help train me, so we could be better prepared. If I could learn anything from him, it would¡­you know¡± Again the room fell into silence, and Meno felt strange guilt come over him, as though he had dragged these two in with him, that it was because of him, they were being asked to risk their lives, to be thrown into a difficult situation with everything on the line for the sake of someone that they had just met in Liv. ¡°Well, we should have expected it actually¡± said Paba looking at the two of them, with a level of acceptance that Meno had not expected. Angie nodded and looked at Meno, ¡°We have the Prelude Gala tomorrow, yeah that¡¯s the dinner¡± she clarified for Meno as he looked at her with a stunned look. ¡°I guess we should be on full alert from now on,¡± she said to Meno¡¯s surprise, and Paba sat next to Angie, looking up at him, ¡°So, what¡¯s the plan?¡± Chapter 17: The Prelude Gala Meno tugged at the collar of his moss green suit as the lift descended toward the Prelude Gala in the Grand hall of the temple. Angie and Paba stood beside him, Angie smoothing out the dress that Liv had arranged for her - a slick purple gown that clung to her frame - Liv had said that she had chosen it, particularly for Angie as she thought she would suit it. She had however been reluctant about it from the start. She was still uneasy with Liv¡¯s casual mention of the gala as a simple dinner with the Traes. Despite her initial frustration, Angie eventually agreed to go, taking it in her stride, including the dress she clearly wouldn''t have chosen for herself. Meno had wondered when last Angie would have chosen to wear a dress. She didn''t look unfamiliar with holding it in her hands when she first examined it, as well as standing in high-heeled shoes, but she had also been on a planet in an exo-suit for twenty-plus years. Meno couldn''t help but think that the dress looked striking, but could see it wasn''t Angie''s style. Paba on the other hand had not stopped twirling in her bright pink dress, which had made her scream the moment she saw it. Meno didn''t need to remark how she looked in it as she did that herself, ¡°Gods, I look absolutely, fabulous. I suit being a princess, dont you think? Meno! Dont you think?¡± she had said while spinning in front of the mirror. She had been beaming ever since and seemed to have developed a new walk which made her sway from side to side since wearing it. Meno and Angie had both needed to enter her room a number of times each, needing to identify if she was sitting in the most ¡®appealing¡¯ way, or drinking in a way that shows off her style. Meno had spent some time looking at himself in the mirror in fact, only when he was absolutely certain he was alone. He noted the difference in his appearance since coming to Yeley. Long gone were the rat tails that he had always had atop his head, which had been periodically cut by Hellen with old scissors, now his hair was cropped on the sides, and left to a medium length on top, he was able to run his hands through it and part it for the gala. His skin, once a grey from a lack of sunlight under the poison fog of Gol, had some colour to it, though it had been noted by Paba holding her arm against his that it was not much. He thought that he looked healthier, definitely cleaner and thanks to being able to train with the Traes guard and 6, he had managed to keep his muscle mass up. Only his eyes remained the same: dark, set beneath thick brows, and¡ªhe hoped¡ªstill kind, as Hellen once noted. It was strange to see himself like that. ¡°Now remember,¡± said Angie who flattened her dress one more time while taking a slow breath, ¡°Let¡¯s keep our eyes open, and please, let¡¯s act like normal people¡± she said looking over to Paba who seemed to not be paying attention to anything at all. ¡°Will do¡± said Meno feeling like Angie needed some type of response from them, and she most certainly was not going to get that from Paba. The doors to the lift opened and they were met by an immediate hum of people, there were sounds of chinking glass and laughter from the great hall which was just through the vestibule that they needed to enter. The doors were flanked by guards with data pads with people queuing to get ticked off the list before entering. They walked over to the guards that were standing in the doorway, ¡°Security is tight¡± said Angie, though Meno thought this was more to herself as she watched the guards moving around the queue of people. He saw in the gantries above that guards were patrolling, all in their full exo-suit gear. It felt uncomfortable, but to the people he saw walking around in brightly coloured dresses and suits, they didn''t seem to exist. Meno had become somewhat used to having an uneasy feeling in his chest now. Since the attack and the visit from Worrec, he had an underlying tension that was building up. He didn''t like it but was using it as a way to keep himself alert, to keep focus. The attackers that they had managed to capture had not yielded anything under interrogation, which to Meno, and after consultation from Angie, seemed to be odd. The fact that they could glean almost nothing from the attackers besides that they were foreigners was concerning. In Meno¡¯s mind this stank of something foul. As they joined the line, the guards quickly ushered them into the hall, marking their arrival on a datapad. The moment Meno stepped into the Grand Hall, his eyes were drawn upward, captivated by the floating orbs projecting light across the room. Enormous images of the planet¡¯s founder and goddess, Det''em, appeared in the four corners of the hall, each veiled by a blindfold and engaged in a slow, graceful dance, embodying different elements of Yeley within her hands. In the far right corner, Det''em was formed from shimmering water, casting holographic droplets that sparkled over the room. Opposite her, she emerged from gentle fire, radiating the warm glow of Yeley¡¯s sun. To his immediate right, Det''em took the shape of intertwining flowers and trees, a vibrant image of Yeley¡¯s flourishing nature. To his left, she was constantly shifting, her form and attire flowing seamlessly from one face to another, each expression graced with a serene smile as she gazed upon the crowds below. ¡°She must represent the people¡± said Meno taking in the shifting form, but he found that neither of them was listening to him. Angie was looking around the room with her usual keen eye, Meno followed her eyes and noticed that there were guards moving at the perimeter of the room in the hall too, he also noticed that there were some plain-clothed guards in the room, as he recognised Commander Moran as well as August who raised his glass into the air at Meno, who awkwardly raised his empty hand. He noted, after he had recovered from his embarrassment, that Moran looked slightly more pale than the last time he had seen him, his eyes a bit more sunken. Meno imagined that with the attack, he must have been under enormous pressure, and on top of that, they now were hosting a gala in the temple itself. It must have been stressful. He kept his eyes open, looking for anything in the crowd that might look out of place, and then he saw amongst all of the colours within the crowd, Meno¡¯s eyes were drawn to a pale, gaunt-looking figure in a black suit with shoulder length black hair looking through the crowd. He struck Meno as strange, somewhat out of place in the brightly coloured perfumed room. Meno shifted to try and see the figure but seemed to lose him in the crowd. ¡°Must be two hundred people here¡± said Paba leaning into them distracting Meno. She had a glass of champaign in her hand, ¡°Where the hell did you¡­? Never mind, please be normal Paba,¡± pleaded Angie as she looked at Paba who was drinking her champagne and rolling her eyes. Meno had seen Paba¡¯s quick hands on a few occasions now and merely smiled at her proud look as she took a sip. ¡°Ah, you all look wonderful¡± said Harold walking toward them with a plain-clothed Shilu Salfor who stood tall and proud. His hands were together and Meno could imagine that there had just been a small, silent clap. He was wearing white and purple robes that wrapped around him and his usual smile plastered to his face. Shilu followed closely behind also smiling at them, she was wearing a similar dress to Angie, but in black. She nodded to Angie, Meno knew that they got along, both being from Hulfean space, which he had learned had been where Harold himself was from. He had overheard them on a few occasions share an inside joke, or speak about different foods from their region. She wore the dress with a more familiarity than Angie though. ¡°I was asked by Lady Olivia to find you as soon as you came in, I think she was worried that you may feel out of place, somehow,¡± he said beaming at them. ¡°This is quite an event,¡± Meno said taking in the brightly coloured dresses and suits of the crowd in front of them. It was quite incredible, the people of Yeley had always enjoyed wearing their colours, but this was somehow more, and in combination with jewels, the light music in the background, the holograms of Det¡¯em slowly dancing over them and the perfumed air, it was a sensory masterpiece.. ¡°Thanks for finding us,¡± said Angie looking genuinely relieved, ¡°So when does Liv speak?¡± asked Meno pulling himself back to focus front he distractions. He needed to remember everything that they had discussed, ¡®We need to keep our eyes peeled at every point¡¯ had said Angie before they had left, ¡®The guard knows that these are dangerous times, but we need to assume that Worrec knows more¡¯, ¡°We should be hearing her in¡­¡± ¡°These must be the new heroes Det¡¯em¡± said a man who interrupted Harold speaking loudly as he came through from the crowd with two people trailing him. He wore a deep green suit with neatly parted greying hair and an overly confident expression, he walked with his arms open towards him. The woman that was following him looked stern and wore a silver dress with severe lines, the man trailing behind her was wearing a light brown suit and seemed to exude the same level of overconfidence as the man he followed.. ¡°Ah Professor,¡± said Harold who turned to face the man who looked down on him with a cunning grin, ¡°May I please introduce you three to Professor Isaac Grasci, head of Economics at The University of Det¡¯em and the Head of Yelean Front,¡± he said holding his arm out to Meno, Angie and Paba. Meno felt his insides go cold, completely stunned, he looked wordlessly at the Professor. By all accounts, this man was responsible for the attack on Liv, and now he was standing in front of them, bold, arrogant, unapologetic. ¡°Professor, this is Meno, Anglea Lawrence, and Paba Rebapa,¡± said Harold, his expression unchanging from its usual plastered smile. He showed his experience in diplomatic affairs. ¡°I regretted hearing the news of the attack, but was so warmed to hear of her companions that risked their lives in her defence,¡± he said taking them all in, his arms out once more, ¡°How fortunate she is to have friends like yourselves,¡± Meno just stared at the man, trying to understand how he was here, everyone knew that he was behind the attack, so why was he here? ¡°It¡¯s a pleasure to meet you, Professor,¡± said Paba to Meno¡¯s shock but saw that Angie was in a similar state to himself and had not said a word. She had somehow developed a high-class accent with a high-pitched tone, ¡°But it was not just us that fought for the Lady Olivia but the people of Yeley too. They showed that they still firmly support the Traes,¡± she finished with a barb. The professor seemed taken aback but recovered well. Meno was also taken aback, where did that come from? ¡°It shows the true character of the Planetary heads to have extended an invite to you during these most challenging of political climates¡± her accent even changed, ¡°Yes, they are accommodating, aren¡¯t they? I¡¯m glad that you are following the news on Yeley, from my understanding you are not from the planet yourself¡± he said with a wicked smile, ¡°If you have the time, I would be happy to run you through the nuance of our landscape¡±, Meno and Angie both turned to Paba, watching this unseen version of her as she raised her eyebrow with a sardonic smile, ¡°Oh, no need Professor, I am familiar with populist rhetoric and a reliance on public outrage with no foundational substance, derivative really, but then I suppose that you have never needed to run a planet so perhaps you lack the nuanced understanding of a true political opposition,¡± Paba added that one as a special strike, ¡°It¡¯s seen all over the galaxy really, nothing unique, I¡¯m afraid,¡± she said with a devilish smile, The professor for the first time looked shocked, his eyes tightened and Meno saw a slight twitch at the side of his mouth, but only for the briefest of moments, and then he laughed out loud looking at the rest of them, This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°Ah, Lady Olivia has found some interesting friends, hasn''t she, even if they are not so well informed¡± he said raising his arms again, ¡°Well it was a pleasure meeting you all, and I look forward to a time when we can properly discuss your stance, Ms. Rebapa,¡± he said bowing his head slightly, before walking away. ¡°What the fuck was that?¡± said Meno smiling wide-eyed as he looked at Paba, who looked smug and very proud of herself, ¡°Don¡¯t mess with my people¡± she said with a little shake. She then looked over at Angie who was still dumbstruck, ¡°Let¡¯s act like normal people, Angie,¡± she said emphasising the name, which made Meno laugh. He was still in awe and found himself wondering what happened to the Paba that shrank under the question of Liv when they sat on a patio for lunch not so long ago. ¡°What the hell is he doing here, Harold?¡±, Angie said to Harold ignoring Paba. With everything going on, and with Worrecs warning about Yeley about to fall, was this not a bit too risky? Was this exactly what Worrec was talking about, that perhaps Yeley was going to fall simply because the Traes were making decisions like this? Harold pulled them to the side, got all of them drinks and then explained that it was a move made by Liv herself, who had decided she could somewhat neutralise his power by pulling him into a situation that was not under his control. He would not have been able to decline the invite, and it would question his legitimacy of being a man of the people during his speech at the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival as well. The old man seemed to be rather impressed with her. Meno had his reservations, and he saw that Angie shared them. Her eyes were now sharper than ever scanning the room. ¡°It¡¯s risky, right?¡± ¡°Controlled risk,¡± answered Harold in his usual sage-like manner, ¡°He will not be able to do anything without bringing any scrutiny on himself, even he will need the people in this room if he wants to legitimately challenge the leadership of the planet. He has to play by our rules now, and we are forcing him to remove himself as the pauper''s hero. Everyone in this room knows that they stand above the average citizen, they may not say it out loud, but it¡¯s no secret, and on top of that, no citizen truly believes that they are equal to anyone in this room. His position has been one that he fights for the people, with the people, because he is not from this world, well now he is. We have a chance here to compromise his position,¡±. ¡°There¡¯s Liv,¡± said Paba with a big wave to the front of the hall, between the great sun and water effigies of Det¡¯em. Liv looked at them, smiled, and waved with her hand held low and slightly behind her. Meno saw that she was performing her duties with her parents, both cast in white and looking more ethereal than ever, tall, compassionate, but with that heir of superiority that ensured that people knew them to be superior, but with expressions that showed kindness and empathy. ¡°They know how to stand out those two don¡¯t they?¡± said Angie, who had already looked away. Meno had the feeling that Angie had seen the Traes and Liv long before Paba had spotted them. They watched the Traes, the two blonde parents and their dark-haired daughter as they greeted guests, receiving bows and smiles from the elite of Yeley and graciously speaking to all that came their way. Liv was so composed and controlled in her manner with the guests, he was so used to seeing her bubbly and energetic side that he had forgotten that she fulfilled a diplomatic role. He now truly saw her as the daughter of the Traes, in lineage for the role of Planetary head of Yeley. He felt his stomach twist in it as he heard the words that Worrec had said to him just a few days ago, ¡®It¡¯s not a question of if, kid, Yeley will fall¡¯ The conversation moved to speculation around the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival, which had been on all of their minds lately, like a bad itch. It was reiterated that while the Prelude ball was the most prestigious event on Yeley for the elite, though it was shown via hologram to the people, The Sun¡¯s Rising Festival was the biggest and most important event on the planet. It represented the prosperity of the planet, its people, and the new year that would be coming in. Harold assured them that the security for the event could not be tighter and that Moran himself was overseeing the preparations, which to Meno, explained the fatigue he had seen on the Commander of the Traes Guard¡¯s face. Shilu was explaining some of the finer details to Angie, proving to Meno that they really were trusted here, and he noticed Harold''s eyes on him as he and Paba listened intently to the discussion around what needed to happen and how cautious they were being. ¡°It really is adorable how close you have all become¡± he said with a wink, which Meno initially smiled at and then looked back quickly at Harold recognising the wording, but before he could say anything, music erupted in the room and an announcer who was being lifted into the air by a square platform around a meter and a half wide and tall, "Welcome, welcome!" greeted the woman in a dress crafted to resemble swirling snow¡ªits surface truly in motion, with tiny snowflakes drifting off like whispered breaths of winter. Overhead, the grand images of Det''em lifted their heads in unison, and together, they raised their hands. In a synchronized gesture, each pair of the goddess¡¯s hands extended toward the room¡¯s center, igniting in a burst of brilliant light. "...To the Prelude Gala!" she announced, flinging her arms wide. Her snowy dress billowed outward, scattering snowflakes like a passing cloud, before transforming into a radiant cascade of yellow and orange, shimmering as if woven from light itself. The crowd erupted in cheers as the statues along the walls joined hands, and ethereal images of the hostess floated between the goddess¡¯s radiant forms. ¡°This is the premier Gala of the year, where the global heads of regions and industry meet, where Yeley¡¯s future is decided, our impact here today will forge the Yeley of tomorrow and you are all part of it¡± She said with a glowing smile, to which the crowd cheered, ¡°Now, as I am sure that you are all aware, Yeley has had a trying year, but as always we Yeleans stand firm together as a united front ahead of any storm. The people of Yeley are resilient, we always have been, since the days of our founder, Det¡¯em, who cultivated this world into what it is today, a paradise, where the lands stretch with fertility, the sun rays nourish our very souls, and of course, where the people are free¡­¡± ¡°A bit thick dont you think?¡± said Paba leaning over to Meno, ¡°Yes, yes¡­¡± she said as the cheers continued, ¡°Let us not forget, it has been a trying year, but not all harvests are equal, and we must work hard together to ensure that our bountiful lands move forward with peace of mind, to another prosperous year for all of Yeley! Of course, we are usually led in that by our graceful and dutiful leaders, Pac and Eher Traes who have worked tirelessly to make Yeley as great as she is,¡± there was controlled applause that fluttered through the hall ¡°but this year, we have a small change¡± the crowd murmured, ¡°Yes, we have a slight change this year, and let me tell you, it is one that I am so very proud to see, and I am sure that you will feel the same. We have all watched her grow up from a beautiful little girl, her mother''s spirit when it comes to the people of Yeley, her father''s fierce determination in the unknown, yes, after being attacked in the most hideous of ways just a few days ago, I have the very great honour of introducing you to this year''s speaker, Lady Olivia Traes!¡± she roared the name and was immediately drowned out by the crowd that cheered. She had garnered more appreciation from the crowd than her parents had, he thought. Meno saw another square, the same as the speaker was on, rise into the air, and Olivia, standing with a composed smile lifted into the air above the crowd, the light from the images of Det¡¯em bowed their heads at the daughter''s ascent. ¡°Go Liv!¡± screamed Paba as she jumped up and down clapping. Meno just watched as she rose, and received a bow from the speaker, whose platform had started to drop below Lady Olivia Traes. She waited for the cheers to die down, giving an enigmatic smile and nodding to portions of the crowd, ¡°Thank you, all of you, for being here, for showing your support, for being the very foundation of Yeley itself¡± Once more the crowd roared its approval, ¡°Here, here!¡± ¡°Lady Olivia!¡± ¡°As you know, I and a convoy of my closest people were attacked within the city of Det¡¯em, the capital of our most beautiful planet¡± Liv raised a hand as the descent was issued, ¡°It was a terrible ordeal, and something which I most dreadfully regret, but it was something that showed me the truest character of Yeley. During the attack, even with the trained and ever-impressive guard, we were being overpowered, the reports are true, though our guard fought valiantly, the brutality of our attackers proved to be something sinister, there were just too many for us to take on, until¡­¡± The room had now fallen silent, all wanted to hear what really happened that day, and everyone wanted the inside scoop of what actually happened that day, ¡°We were saved by the people¡± the crowd cheered once more, ¡°By everyday members of our society, by the good people who work our fields, care for our cities and lands, who look after the children and nourish this world! Yes, I would like to issue my greatest appreciation to our people, the good and true and loyal people of Yeley, for standing and showing courage that should not be expected, but shone through the threat of the attack, for putting themselves in harm''s way to defend their home!¡± ¡°Liiiivvvv!¡± cried Paba. Meno saw Harold looking up with absolute pride at the girl that he had trained, but there was almost a sadness in that ever-present smile of his, ¡°I know that there have been rumours that this was an attack by Yelean Front, I have heard them, I have seen speculations about this, and I want to formally quash those rumours¡± A hushed murmuring fell over the crowd, ¡°We do not blame The Yelean Front for this attack, nor do we hold any grudge against our people''s voices when they speak up. We hold the YF in the very highest esteem, it is a movement which embodies the very nature of Yeley, to be able to stand up, to say your piece, to be heard. In that, we have invited Professor Grasci here today¡± The light from the statues of Det¡¯em ran through the crowd and found the professor who was now bathed in white light, and Meno could tell was not happy about this sudden focus on him but was polished enough to put on a face with a wave to the crowd, ¡°Welcome Professor, we are so grateful to have you here once more, and to join in the festivities today¡± she said with a kind smile, and masterful devilry, ¡°The Yelean Front is not responsible for this, the Traes have seen this movement grow, we have listened to their voices, and we have understood the reason why. Yeley has also been under scrutiny from our client planets, new regulations threaten our livelihoods, and more difficult conditions mean that the average Yelean now has less but is required to work more. This is something that I hope at this Gala we will finally find an end to. We now look forward to the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival where we will usher in a new year, a new understanding, a new Yeley as we paint our cities and prepare for our new harvest, united, with a sense of need, a sense of purpose that changes must be made¡± Again the crowd murmured at these words, but she pressed on, ¡°Yeley will not be moved by outsiders willing to change the way that we live, we are an independent world, our people come first, this land is Yeley and we stand firm!¡± she roared her message and was immediately drowned out by the crowd as elation leapt through the room. The cheers went on with people screaming out her name, lifting their glasses and clapping as her platform descended. She bowed and waved to the crowd. ¡°That was quite a speech,¡± said Angie looking at Meno in somewhat of a daze. He wanted to agree, but there was a part of him that felt like casting the light on Grasci had been a bold attack, and after meeting the man, not one that would be taken lying down. She had most certainly tried to remove him from the people there. Making it seem as though he was more aligned to the Traes than would have been previously thought. ¡°You must be very proud, Harry,¡± said Paba leaning over to the toad-like sage, who chuckled at her familiarity, it seemed she had swiped a few more glasses when Angie was not looking. ¡°Yes, yes, quite the performance¡± he said but again, Meno picked up something strange in his response. ¡°You alright, Meno?¡± said Angie looking over at him, he noticed that Shilu was looking at him too with a concerned expression, ¡°I¡¯m fine, I think I am still blown away by her speech, that was incredible,¡± he said forcing a big smile, covering the lurch in his stomach. This was no simple speech, it was no frivolous thing, it was a strategic move to fight off an enemy. He couldn''t help himself from feeling that this was just part of a very dangerous game, and now, it was their opponent''s turn to make their move, and Grasci had the stage of the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival and the ears of the people of Yeley. Chapter 18: Preparations Meno blocked two jabs, quickly ducked and then hoisted his arm up where he expected 6¡¯s jawline, but 6 was faster, moving away from him and spinning beneath him. Meno felt a slight tap on his back by his left kidney, a subtle reminder that if this were real, He would be in serious trouble. He exhaled, feeling the sting in his forearms from the repeated blocks, and looked up at the towering Kryptea. ¡°You are sacrificing balance,¡± came 6¡¯s calm, resonant voice. He wasn¡¯t panting and didn¡¯t even look winded. Meno, by contrast, was drenched in sweat, drops tracing their way down his forehead. ¡°I thought I saw an opening,¡± Meno said, hands on his knees, breathing deeply. He half-smiled, already anticipating 6¡¯s response. ¡®I let you believe there was an opening.¡¯ It was a reminder he¡¯d heard before. Training with 6 was as much a game of chess as it was combat. At first, Meno had thought of him as a straightforward fighter, but he¡¯d come to realise that 6 approached combat as an art form, blending skill with razor-sharp tactical insight. ¡°You must have the intent¡±, 6 said, turning and walking back to his starting position. Meno wiped his brow and readied himself. He cast quick glance to the balustrades, spotting Angie and Liv watching him, with Efreet standing dutifully just behind them. Paba, meanwhile, had once again been called to check on the planet''s systems. Meno was beginning to think Angie was right - they were probably getting her to look at the security systems. Whether Paba was aware of this or not, he couldn''t say. He suspected that she was, but true to her nature she would act as if she wasn¡¯t. She still had not been granted access to connect to the network, as they still wanted to be cautious. To Meno, this felt redundant, after getting to know Paba, he realised that she didn''t need permission, she probably already had access to it. They¡¯d been watching over him for hours and their boredom was apparent. He had thought that he would be closer to the Kryptea¡¯s level now, but each time he thought that his strength or speed could match him, the soldier outmanoeuvred him with effortless wit and experience. 6 wasn''t even using his full abilities, and still Meno struggled to keep up. He needed to concentrate. ¡°Almost had him, Meno,¡± came Liv¡¯s voice, utterly flat without even glancing at the fight. She just repeated what she¡¯d said hours ago. The Kryptea moved, and Meno, now able to pick his movements better, pushed himself backwards, still facing the oncoming soldier, forcing him to take an extra step. The trap was set. Meno surged forward at the Kryptea, his left arm raised to block the swinging arm of the red-skinned soldier, and turned, thrusting his shoulder into his chest. He did not let go of 6¡¯s arm, and after the initial bump pulled him back, and threw his right hand into his stomach. It felt like hitting the very temple walls itself as it sent a dull pain through his forearm. 6 released his right arm, jabbing towards Meno¡¯s head, but he ducked just in time and spun his leg out to try to take out 6¡¯s legs, but the Kryptea jumped. Meno grinned knowing he had him. He grabbed one of the 6''s legs, pushing it to the side, causing him to lose his balance midair, but the Kryptea was fast and kicked out with his other leg, which Meno blocked, sending a stinging jolt through his forearm and hit his own head in the defensive move. They stopped, two meters apart, and to Meno¡¯s surprise, he saw something of pride wash across the Kryptea¡¯s face. He exhaled deeply, and looked up to the balustrade of the Traes training room, hoping for some sign of appreciation from the onlookers. Instead, he saw Liv and Angie speaking between themselves, barely paying him any mind. ¡°Really, the one fucking time I¡­¡± he muttered, panting as put his hands on his hips. ¡°You still haven¡¯t answered me, by the way,¡± he said to 6 who now that he wasn''t fighting stood like a monolith, ¡°Why haven''t you taken a name?¡±, Meno knew that trying to make conversation with a Kryptea was unusual, he had received plenty questioning looks from everyone around him whenever he had asked for 6¡¯s opinion on something, be it what he thought of Grasci, the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival, or the Traes. ¡®They don¡¯t have opinions, Meno, they have that worked out of them, they just do what they are asked, without question, nothing more¡¯ Angie had once explained, seemingly more concerned for him than irritated, he had to admit. ¡®It¡¯s just muscle in their heads, they don¡¯t know how to think¡¯ had been Paba¡¯s response. But Meno thought differently, especially about 6. The other Kryptea had proven Angie and Paba right. They were stoic, ascetic, devoid of emotion, and simply did what they were told without question, without hesitation. But 6.. 6 was different. Meno had seen something different in this Kryptea, subtle hints, small cracks in the facade. He had seen him smile on the day of the attack, the way he watched over the children with a quiet fondness. And when Meno asked him to train, even if only under the orders of Liv, there had been a hidden excitement in him. He hadn''t taken a name, and all of these things made Meno think that this Kryptea was different. His eyes drifted slightly away at Meno¡¯s question, looking up around the balustrades. Meno suspected that he was looking for his own comrades, who no doubt would look down on him answering questions, or speaking at all for that matter. ¡°There is a name that I will take,¡± 6 said calmly, after seeing that nobody was watching. Meno was fascinated, this was something the Kryptea were said not to have, something that had been stripped from them. This was an ambition, something individual 6 was looking for. Meno tried to contain his intrigue but wanted to press on. ¡°Is that normal for a Kryptea, to choose the name?¡± he asked, stepping closer slowly to 6 to offer more cover, to continue the conversation. He wanted to ask something deeper, something more probing but sensed that this open-ended question might yield more. ¡°No,¡± 6 replied, his gaze fixed ahead, ¡°but I am not a citizen yet, I am not Kryptea¡±. It was the second time Meno had heard him say this, and while logically it was true, he wasn''t officially a citizen of Lacedon until he took a name, but it was the phrasing that struck Meno as odd. Why add the ¡®I am not Kryptea¡¯. Even in the slightest tone that Meno could pick up in his voice, there was something that sounded almost like¡­ disdain. ¡°You follow their orders though?¡± Meno asked ¡°Yes,¡± replied 6, though there was a momentary hesitation, brief, but there. ¡°What would happen if you didn''t¡­¡± Meno began, but stopped at the slightest of movements from 6 as he raised his fingers in a gesture that said ¡®Enough¡¯. Meno turned to see up on the balcony, where the female Kryptea had just walked in, her cold eyes falling on 6. Meno looked between the two of them. 6 now standing in front of him, with his back facing him. Meno looked over his shoulder to see the female Kryptea. Meno¡¯s gaze fell on the scars on 6¡¯s back, which he had noticed before on the glider when they were going to the library. He had now seen them on a total of three occasions before their training sessions. The lines were uniform and straight, and they were cut at different angles. Meno glanced back up, he caught the female Kryptea¡¯s gaze now fixed on him. A question stirred within him¡ªhad she been the one to inflict this punishment? ¡°You¡¯ve got to stop trying to talk with him, Meno,¡± said Angie as they made their way to the apartments after his session. His forearm was killing him, but he knew the tech patches stashed in the apartment from the attack would fix it within minutes. He stretched out his left shoulder, relieved to find only the faintest stiffness remained. The stuff really was a miracle. ¡°He¡¯s different¡± Meno insisted, opening the door and holding it for Angie. ¡°Doesn''t matter. All it takes is you saying one wrong thing, and you''re done¡± she said with finality. ¡°Ah good, you''re still alive,¡± said Paba, seated at the wooden table in the living room. She deeply disliked that Meno was training with 6, insisting he¡¯d murder him at the first chance he got. Much like Angie, actually. Meno noticed her small pendant was once again out around her, she seemed to be wearing it more often lately. saw the small pendant around her neck out once more and it seemed that she had just put it back on. She seemed to have it out more now than she had previously. She was in a bubbly mood, holding her datapad, which was a permanent feature of her person nowadays. ¡°Yes, but he¡¯s still trying to make friends with the machine,¡± said Angi, walking over to the window to do her routine perimeter check of the apartments. ¡°Yeah¡­that¡¯s so¡­weird,¡± said Paba, dropping her gaze to the datapad, avoiding them. She cleared her throat, ¡°What did Liv say?¡± This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author''s work. ¡°She¡¯ll get us some tech,¡± Angie said as she finished her check. ¡°She spoke to her mother and got the green light. Apparently, we¡¯ve proven ourselves as decent security for her daughter. It won¡¯t be the best kit out there, but it''s something¡±. Paba nodded with an excited smile. They had all been feeling the same way since the attack and Worrec¡¯s warning, and then there was the speech at the Prelude Gala. They¡¯d felt underprepared, naked in front of a threat that was hanging over them. Meno had the tech that Worrec had given him, though he disliked using it, as it brought up symbols and writing that flickered in his vision, accompanied by faint ticking sounds whenever he received a notification. Paba had examined it again since they landed on Yeley and confirmed it was just comms tech¡ªsomething Angie sorely wanted back after losing hers on Gol. Meno was intrigued by the tech. Paba and Angie both told him that it could enhance his physical abilities, which is what they wanted for him. He knew it was stupid, but somehow, using tech like that didn''t sit right with him. It felt¡­ lazy. ¡®Just like Lor¡¯ Angie said with a smile, shaking her head, ¡®But even he used tech, Meno¡¯. Angie and Paba had been brainstorming ways so they could better prepare themselves, from getting some tech, to mapping the Temple. They even tried to develop hand signals, though Meno and Paba were both terrible at it, and Angie had quickly dropped the idea after seeing their hopeless attempts. Angie mentioned a trick that they¡¯d used during the war. She¡¯d never had much affinity for tech and was not able to use it very well even then, but with all of the tech flying around during the war, they¡¯d had stockpiles of the stuff, and without the ability to use it effectively, they created new tactics, mainly, tech grenades. What was required was a power source for the tech that could be used to ignite the small devices meant to be inserted subdermally, once they were thrown. Paba, upon hearing this immediately said that this was something that she could do, and had been working on some designs, refining the idea. ¡°That¡¯s perfect. I¡¯ve also been thinking more about what Worrec must have,¡± Paba added, continuing the conversation that she and Angie had been having before Meno left for training, ¡°He must have some stealth tech, otherwise we would have seen him in the room, Meno said he was there as the door shut, that there was barely a moment before us leaving and him arriving.¡± ¡°Could be, could he also have shifter abilities?¡± Angie began, her too acting like this conversation hadn¡¯t stopped, ¡°He could have shifted right in front of Meno without him realising it¡± ¡°Right here,¡± Meno interjected, raising his hand with futility as they carried on. ¡°Shifting through this?¡± Paba said, pointing her thumb over her shoulder. She was indicating to the faint glow of symbols and words lining the temple¡¯s barrier wall. Meno had seen the insignia everywhere in the temple and now knew that it was tech itself, older but very tough to get through. Powered by massive generators, and even though it was simple and perhaps outdated, it had enough power running through it that it would stop almost anything that was thrown at it. ¡°They keep out what they know,¡± said Angie knowingly. ¡°He could have some high-grade tech built to bypass it, he could have fiddled with the wards or, worst case scenario, he could have just overpowered it. It¡¯s possible,¡± she assured Paba, revisiting a discussion they¡¯d had before. ¡°Don¡¯t see that happening, these wards are pulling mad power, and there¡¯s no sign they¡¯ve been tampered with¡± Paba countered. So she was in their network already, Meno thought, wondering if the people she was working with knew that. ¡°How much tech do you think he¡¯s got?¡± Meno asked, wondering if they would even hear him, ¡°Surely there is a limit?¡± he said a bit louder to make sure that they heard him. ¡°Depends on your affinity for it. If the tech works for you, the less energy it pulls from the cells in your body. So the generators don¡¯t need to work as hard, which leaves more energy available for other tech use. But if you have a bad match, you end up pulling most of the energy just to power the one piece of tech¡±. ¡°Basically, he could have a bunch if he¡¯s got good tech, and he¡¯s good at using it,¡± said Paba, ¡°And trust me I hate to say this, but I think he¡¯s pretty damn good with it¡± ¡°What if he¡¯s a primer?¡± Meno asked, making Angie pause and think for a moment, it had been something that Meno knew that they had discussed previously, leaving it as something they needed to discuss more, but hadn''t, ¡°Primers only have one ability, or rather it only presents as one thing,¡± She replied. ¡°They can layer tech on top of it, but I don¡¯t see how a primer ability would give him a way to move from ship to ship like on Gol, slip into a room with you unnoticed, bypass wards undetected to get into your hospital room, and potentially even copy himself if we¡¯re right about that. It¡¯s just too much,¡± she said, her tone seeming to make this decision as she spoke, ¡°I¡¯d say it has to be tech¡±. Meno recalled their last conversation on this, starting to wonder if it even mattered what Worrec had. It was clear he wasn¡¯t going to join them on the ground, preferring instead to keep to his clandestine style¡ªpopping in, leaving cryptic instructions, and disappearing again. Or, like that first time¡­ dying, but not dying. "I¡¯m a bit more complicated than that," Worrec had said to Meno when he¡¯d questioned the tall, blonde stranger about not being dead. Who knew what was happening with that guy. Meno figured it was safer to keep him out of their plans. "I¡¯ve been grabbing gravity cells from around the hangar," Paba announced, completely sidestepping the ongoing conversation as if delivering the best news possible. Angie shot her a worried look, to which Paba responded with a quick, amused laugh. Angie had already voiced her concerns about Paba¡¯s lack of discretion and warned her against making risky moves. But she knew, too, that Paba would argue her way out of anything. So, she let it be. They¡¯d spent the past few days planning every detail they could while holed up in the apartments. Whenever they were out, they watched Olivia like hawks, tracking every movement around her. Meno suspected that Liv had noticed their vigilance but hadn¡¯t said anything, he had a feeling she appreciated it. The attack had rattled her, even if she masked it well, so the added protection was likely a comfort. She was no longer the naive Liv who repeated lines fed by her parents and Harold. Now, she was taking everything seriously. After all, she had taken a public shot at Grasci during her speech, effectively cornering him¡ªand she knew he would retaliate. With two days until the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival, tension hung thick in the air. The news had been buzzing about Liv¡¯s speech, which had been broadcast planet-wide. Normally, it would air intergalactically on obscure channels, but this time, it was shown exclusively on Yeley, under the excuse of rights or ownership issues. The debates among the newscasters had been intense, with particular segments of Liv¡¯s speech sparking fierce scrutiny and discussion. ¡®...there was no plan, no direction, just that we must, what¡­stand firm?¡¯ ¡®To be honest, I am still trying to figure out why they would invite Grasci, and perhaps more pertinent, why he would go¡¯ ¡®I think it was a good move by him, put yourself in his shoes, keep your enemies close, right? And yes, yes, Huwe, they are his enemy, we must not forget. He has positioned himself as opposition, it is as simple as that'' ¡®Well, all I can say is that if you were not looking forward to his speech at the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival, I bet you are now¡¯ The chatter wasn¡¯t just on the news. It echoed in whispers through the corridors of the Temple of Det¡¯er, shared among those who worked with the Traes or had attended the Gala. ¡®You see, it wasn¡¯t The Front, I told you long ago, this was Jinn. Tam saw him¡¯ ¡®Saw Jinn? Be serious Reg. From what I hear, it¡¯s the Houses. Apparently, the Autarch has wanted Yeley, since the days of Det¡¯er¡¯ ¡®Doesn''t matter who it is, the fact is, that it¡¯s happening¡¯ The chatter had been relentless since the speech. But in the moments they shared with Liv, she showed no interest in the whirlwind of opinions swirling around her. She¡¯d become focused, aware, ready. Publicly, she had grown far more visible within her family and had now become the focal point of the discussion around Yeley. Meno couldn¡¯t tell if this was part of a calculated political strategy, but he knew it had stirred questions in his own mind¡ªquestions about the Traes themselves. Why had they allowed the situation to escalate to this point? Would it have been wiser to stamp out The Front before it had a chance to grow? Was this truly about listening to the people and letting their voices be heard, even at the cost of their position as planetary heads? That seemed foolish to him¡­ or was it? He couldn¡¯t decide what the ¡°right¡± decision would be. These questions had polluted Meno¡¯s thoughts since the Gala. He didn¡¯t know who was right, but he knew he didn¡¯t care for Professor Grasci¡¯s smug demeanour when they met. The man¡¯s smirk and condescending tone grated on him as if he paraded himself as the inevitable victor. And perhaps what unsettled him more was the subtle, almost resigned acceptance he sensed from the Traes. Instead of standing strong themselves, they had put Olivia forward as the pillar of strength for the family. Why weren¡¯t they taking the lead? Why hadn¡¯t they shown more of their own resolve? They should be standing taller, asserting their authority. But then the thought crept in: to what extent? Would it take oppression to guarantee safety? The question left Meno uneasy, stirring a conflict within him he couldn¡¯t easily resolve. ¡°Ahh, I¡¯m going to go train again¡± Meno said, jumping up from the sofa. He received questioning looks from the other two, with Paba rolling her eyes, because he had just got back from training, but they also knew better than to say anything. He was filled with anxiety over everything, and training was the only thing that helped him manage it. They each had their own ways of coping, and this was his. With only today and tomorrow left to prepare for the Festival, he couldn¡¯t do much to help with the bomb-making. Training was the only thing that eased the hollow feeling gnawing at his stomach. He recalled what Worrec had said the night he¡¯d appeared in Meno¡¯s hospital room. "Everyone has their reason. Nobody is evil, kid. It¡¯s all about different motivations. It won¡¯t change anything, though. Yeley will fall." Those words echoed in his mind on a relentless loop. He took a deep breath as he stepped into the corridor, making his way toward the training room. It didn¡¯t matter what was coming; he needed to be ready, to be strong on his own terms. In two days, Yeley would face a political crisis¡ªand they would be caught right in the centre of it. Chapter 19: The Suns Rising Festival Meno looked out over the city of Det¡¯em, blocking out the hum of the crowd behind him. He tugged at the collar of the exo-suit provided by the Traes guard before they entered the Planetary Head¡¯s apartments. He had felt the familiar squeezing as it moulded itself to his body, much like the suit had on Gol months ago, a lifetime ago, it seemed. This was the highest he had ever been in the temple, standing on the Patio stretched out from Pac¡¯s and Eher¡¯s apartments, just below the hands of Det¡¯em with a full view of the city. From the patio, he could see the day-long celebrations still in full swing¡ªmusic, cheering, parades, and the annual tradition of painting the buildings to welcome the new year. Meno had watched the festivities, eavesdropping on the guards'' and guests'' conversations, keeping himself alert and ready. Some disturbances had already disrupted the celebrations. Fights had broken out and been promptly broken up. Protests had erupted over certain buildings, including the university and library, being painted in the deep green of The Yelean Front¡¯s colours. The crowd¡¯s anger had flared into violence, requiring intervention from the Det¡¯em armed forces and some of the Traes Guard. "Could it be tactical?" Meno had asked Angie, who stood beside him, clad in an exo-suit, looking far more comfortable than he¡¯d seen in a long time. "Could be. The incidents are spread out, which splits the forces. Wouldn¡¯t be a bad tactic," she replied, eyes fixed on the vibrant scene below, the colourful smoke and music swirling through it. "Moran knows what he¡¯s doing." All flights in and out of the world had been suspended at Moran¡¯s request after reports of a House Pillar entering orbit. Something that they were assured was purely for protection purposes and would be used as such. "...more of a deterrent than anything else. We didn¡¯t ask for it, but it''s what you can expect from the Houses. It''ll make Grasci cautious, and that¡¯s what matters," Moran had said earlier, his large black moustache twitching as he briefed the hand-selected guards and the Traes¡¯ guests. "And let¡¯s not forget the Lotus is nearby. The Pillar will keep the Eshara in check." Meno, Angie, and Paba had come as Liv¡¯s guests and had been assured that Harold would have insisted they attend even if she hadn¡¯t. Meno glanced across the room, catching sight of Angie and Paba deep in conversation with Liv, Shilu Salfor, and Eher Traes. Eher looked only tired, despite everything that was happening. Meno saw moments where she mastered composure, and had seen enough from her to believe it. He imagined that internally the Traes felt much like himself - like a tempest was swirling in their gut. Pac Traes moved among advisors, Harold constantly by his side, pulling the old man along with him for every conversation, and dropping into hushed tones whenever the two had a moment of peace. Liv, meanwhile, with Eher engaged with dignitaries that forced a smile, her fingers wrapped tightly around her glass, knuckles white. Meno noticed her gaze flitting to the doors more than the people conversing around her. Sensing her tension, Paba had quickly assumed ¡°Liv duty.¡± The room filled with Moran¡¯s hand-picked guard, dignitaries, and the Kryptea, who kept to a corner, silent and ascetic. They seemed unshaken, the only ones immune to the rising anxiety. Meno wondered if this situation struck any of them as unusual. They stood in their simple beige cloth robes, with their iron-bladed weapons held with their flat ends touching the floor. The two named Kryptea, besides 6 who had not yet earned his citizenship. Their red tan skin could have fit in well with the celebrations happening below, with the people painting the buildings and themselves. However, their sheer size, along with their imposing glares would have made them stand out anywhere. Since he began training with 6, Meno had learned a great deal about the other two Kryptea. Archon, their leader, was the most experienced, a veteran of twenty-three battles, having served as a citizen soldier since she was fourteen. Archon was apparently the name of a large business family before she had taken the name. Even 6, unflappable as he seemed, showed his wariness, if not outright fear, in her presence. The other male, Laken, was just a year older than 6 and had fought in eight battles. He¡¯d taken his name from a rebel commander who once attempted to destroy military barracks in Nyambe space, a mantle he assumed at the age of twelve. ¡°You¡¯re making me nervous now,¡± Liv said softly, suddenly appearing beside Meno. ¡°Ah, am I? Sorry. Just never seen a festival before,¡± he replied, forcing a cheerful smile. He noticed her smile was just as strained. Paba gave him an awkward look as she fell in line next to them, and Meno saw Efreet standing diligently, just behind. ¡°The exo-suits are a bit much, aren¡¯t they? Harold insisted that they be ready for anything. At least you¡¯re spared the helmet,¡± she said, offering an apologetic look to her guard behind her. ¡°I think Angie appreciates it,¡± Meno said, glancing at Angie, who stood at the patio¡¯s far side, arms crossed, surveying the city with her back to the wall. ¡°If only we could make it purple,¡± Liv joked, trying to lighten the mood. Paba let out a short, awkward barking laugh, ¡°Ah, I don¡¯t know, I¡¯m sorry, I¡¯m nervous, what do you want from me?¡± she said as she clutched the pendant around her neck. ¡°Not long now,¡± Liv said, allowing the unspoken tension to hang in the air. They didn''t respond, knowing that any response would be speculation at best and words would only stoke their nerves. Meno heard the faintest of whistles and looked over to Angie who darted her eyes downward, and Meno saw that in the Agora below and he saw, bearing the deep green flags and marching as a crowd, the supporters of The Front and Grasci enter into the already crowded agora of the temple. They were chanting something, but from this distance, Meno couldn''t hear it clearly enough, it pulsated through the crowd, becoming louder, more rhythmic, and more coordinated as the green flags filtered into the crowd. ¡°Efreet?¡± Liv picked up on Angie¡¯s signal too. ¡°We¡¯ve been tracking them through the city, my Lady. They¡¯ve been peaceful so far,¡± Efreet said, picking up on the concern. It didn''t seem to put her at ease. Meno noticed he sounded different, admittedly he was wearing a helmet which modulated the voice, but Meno thought it could have been more than that. Maybe nerves had gotten to him too. Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. Meno stayed in his position while the guests moved around him, Liv had told him to eat something, but he had told her that he was fine, and she had excused herself, drifting back into the crowd with Paba, leaving Meno to observe the city below. He kept himself alert and listened to the crowd behind him in their discussions. He may have wanted to keep the speculation low, but that was not shared by all, ¡®Hopefully, that Pillar comes down and just ends this Yelean Front business once and for all¡¯ ¡®We know Pac isn''t going to do anything, I would have thought that Eher might have though¡¯ said a passing couple. ¡®Grasci could be a good option if handled well¡¯ said in a low voice, ¡°Yes, things could escalate but have faith in the guard. These are trained professionals against farmers, allow the course to run,¡± a voice with pomposity said. And then a voice muttered, ¡°Well, we¡¯ll find out in about ten minutes.¡± This had brought Meno back to full consciousness, and he instantly became aware of everything around him, as though he could feel it, every movement like a small ripple that hit his body. The crowds below had become more energetic, their chanting now coming through more clearly than before, and it was clear which side they had chosen, ¡®Grasci, Grasci, Grasci¡­¡¯ they sang, through the clouds of green smoke, the sun now setting. The crowd was growing restless, and Meno could feel the unease echo behind him as the Traes guests bustled around the room, mutterings rising from every corner. He spotted Liv, with Paba still by her side, nodding slowly as she spoke to Liv, who stared ahead, giving the occasional quick nod of agreement. Then the lights came, fluttering up into the air, similar to the orbs from the Prelude Gala, spiralling through the darkening sky and throwing out beams of light that struck against one another, creating a great sparkling mist above the city. The crowds below howled with excitement, willing the leader of YF forward. Deep drums thumped below, echoing through the city and the night sky. The chanting of Grasci¡¯s name grew louder, a fierce rhythm building beneath the billowing green smoke. When the lights began to rise and spiral into the air, an electric thrill coursed through the crowd, swelling into a feverish roar. For a moment, Meno felt as though the city itself held its breath, each beat of the drums vibrating through him. Meno could feel his heart beating with the drums, heavy and hard, but he steeled himself, ready. Then, he arrived as though summoned by the chants of the crowd, like some ritual of magic, glittering light being thrown, the stars of light coalesced into the smug image of Professor Isaac Grasci. Though Meno knew this moment was coming, the hollowness that he¡¯d been feeling in his stomach for so long, now grew almost bottomless. ¡°Good evening, people of Yeley¡± Grasci¡¯s voice boomed theatrically sending a surge of sound through the city, greeted by deafening applause as great images of Grasci appeared as great towers of light shining around the image of the Front¡¯s leader, ¡°And may you all share in a glorious Sun¡¯s Rising Festival!¡± the images stretched their arms out, shooting the light into the dark sky, and illuminating the now painted city, his name being sung by the crowds, harmonising in their prayer. The patio fell silent and still as if frozen in fear by his mere presence. The Traes¡¯ guests, like Meno, felt the terror seep through, cold and pervasive, like an encroaching storm by the sheer scale of support of the crowd. Meno swallowed, looking down at the crowd, now in constant motion, jumping and screaming, holding their hands out to the images of light. ¡°I thank you for your welcome, and I honour you for the sacrifices you¡¯ve made, the burdens you¡¯ve shouldered, in these most difficult times. How strong you are, dear Yeleans, how admirable, how powerful!¡± Cheers erupted from the Agora below, reaching up to the temple. Meno drew back, knowing he couldn¡¯t let himself be distracted by the Professor¡¯s words. He needed to stay aware of what was happening with his people, with Liv. He caught Angie¡¯s eye and then Paba¡¯s, both standing just behind Liv, whose face, reflecting the lights, showed fear. He moved himself closer to the planetary heads, closer to Moran. No one questioned his movement through the guests toward the Traes, which only deepened his worry¡ªif he could move freely, so could someone else. ¡°Yes, it has been a difficult year. We have faced many challenges, and we¡¯ve overcome adversity. We have proven that we, the people of Yeley, speak loudly, we speak our truth, and we have shown that when needed, we make ourselves heard. And I say you must be heard, that our voices must still rise higher, they must be clearer, and more focused, for we need change on this planet of ours." The crowd grew quiet, drawn to the weight of the Professor¡¯s words as his voice lowered. "We all know the situation. We¡¯ve seen it, felt it. We heard the young Lady Traes speak just two nights ago of these struggles¡ªan event I attended. Yes, don¡¯t worry, I¡¯ve seen all the speculations,¡± he added, smiling as a low ripple of laughter stirred below. "Yes, I was there. Disappointed, at first, that neither Pac nor Eher would speak. Now, now..." Grasci continued, his projected effigies of light waving his hands down to quiet the crowd as boos filled the air. "I must congratulate Lady Olivia for standing where her parents dared not¡ªtoo ashamed, perhaps. But it seems the Traes¡¯ answer to Yelean change is simple¡ªanother Traes,¡± he mocked, and Meno saw Pac Traes¡¯ fist tighten. "It was something, I tell you. The arrogance.¡± His face twisted in disgust. "They had our founder, the goddess of Yeley, Det¡¯em, bow to the young Traes girl as she came to speak, then called the elite the foundation of Yeley!" he thundered, as the crowd¡¯s anger swelled around him. "No! And to say all we must do is stand strong, regardless of what the client worlds say? Who does that hurt? Not them, not the privileged who call a Temple home¡ªno! It is you, the ones who would suffer most." He paused dramatically, letting his image glare toward the temple. Meno met the light straight on, which portrayed the professor¡¯s eyes. ¡°No, this is not their home, their world,¡± Grasci declared, voice rising. ¡°I say that it belongs to you, the people of Yeley, for whom Det¡¯em forged this land! You are the foundation of Yeley!¡± The temple quaked with the crowd¡¯s fervour. Meno could no longer see Grasci as he was now in the crowd. He glanced over at Efreet, who stood behind Liv, checking his wrist, perhaps receiving word on the crowd¡¯s movements. The atmosphere grew thick with unrest. ¡°It is profanity, to have our goddess, our founder, bow to these onlookers of our people, who sell our lives for their profits, for their privilege. Their hands have never touched the earth that you harvest, and so I say that if we need change, then we need to start at the top!¡± again he needed to raise his voice over the roars of the city as he continued, ¡°I say that if Yeley is to change, then it should be decided by the people who are Yeley, it must be changed by you!¡± the rumbling of the temple intensified. Meno watched as Moran looked across to a number of his guards and nodded his head. Grasci raised a fist, aglow with energy. ¡°So I say to you, Yeley, Stand up! Fight for what is yours¡±, he said throwing his hands into the air that burned like a star, ¡°For what belongs to you. You must¡ª¡± ¡°Take the shot,¡± Moran murmured, barely audible. ¡°...take what is¡­¡± there was a silence that fell over the city for just a moment, it plunged the patio into a breathless second, and then it came, like waves crashing against the temple walls, the mob screeched. Panic surged through the crowd on the patio, screams and shouts reverberating off the walls, as people rushed over one another in attempts to escape. Meno pushed his way forward to see what had just happened, peering over the edge in time to see Grasci¡¯s falling figure of light, a gaping hole in his forehead, his mouth contorted, still trying to shape his final word that he had not been able to say. His body drifted like a feather in the night sky, the light stuttered and the darkness engulfed the city. ¡°What the fuck¡­?¡± was the only thing that Meno could say before he was hit with a tidal wave of sound as the mob roared. Desperate cries of anger, hatred, and betrayal were all directed at the temple, the echoing voices all hitting the home of the Traes in cries for blood. Chapter 20: The Fall Liv couldn''t breathe, the world in front of her swirled in slow motion, shapes moved around her darting in all directions. The distant cries of people in panic. She saw her father stumble backwards, her mother looking to her husband desperately. The room drifted with strokes of colour as people danced in fear at what they had just seen. Harold was now looking over her father, the white and electric blue of his threads, vibrating and shimmering as they engulfed her parents, as he spoke into her father''s ear. She felt a tugging on her left arm, but didn''t react, not knowing why someone would be tugging at her, then a hand on her shoulder that pulled her back, releasing all the air that she was holding in at that moment. She caught a glimpse of Grasci¡¯s figure falling through the skies above the city of Det¡¯em, stray beams of light struggling to keep up with the motion of its descent, the lights danced erratically around his falling figure, casting eerie shadows on Det¡¯em, struggling to cling to his form as if alive. In the flickering, she saw a boy standing with his helmet off, standing at the front of the patio. The only thing still on the patio, like an island in a stormy sea. He watched the waning light over the city, as darkness took Det¡¯em. The arm that was on her shoulder spun her around and the tugging on her left arm followed, ¡°Liv! Liv!¡± Paba¡¯s cries came loudly and penetrated her shock. Her head snapped around the room and she was immersed in a world full of sound, shouting from every direction of the room. Paba was looking over Liv¡¯s shoulder, her small hand holding her own arm in a vice. ¡°We¡¯re leaving, now,¡± said Efreet placing his arm over her shoulders, his voice flat and calm somehow, but clear. ¡°This way¡± called Angie from one of the doors, flanked by two guards who looked to Efreet, who nodded at them to let them pass. Did we? She didn''t know what to think or how that had happened. The itch that had been under her skin for days now, since the Gala, ached, all over her body, under her skin, within her mind. It told her to scratch, to pull at it, to rip off the parts so that it may be satiated. She looked at her parents, now moving in Harold¡¯s wake, Moran with five guards walking towards them. ¡°Meno¡­¡± she said breathlessly looking back to him and just then saw under a burst of orange light followed by a thunderous crack as three explosions bloomed in the city simultaneously, casting a glow into the sky as Det¡¯em screamed as though wounded herself. She heard the call. She was hit with a shockwave of heat that rushed into the patio and pushed back into Efreet¡¯s arms, who held her up. Meno was still standing over the patio, now with his forearm raised over his eyes, ¡°Meno, move!¡± Angie bellowed through the cacophony of sound. She looked back to her parents as Efreet pulled her away from the door and saw that Moran¡¯s men were standing around him, Harold facing the Traes Commander, his threads crackling and becoming more blue, he was empowering himself, and then Liv saw the knife thrust into her old mentor''s chest. Moran had delivered it with so much force that it raised Harold from the ground, his eyes going wide as her parents leapt to him, ¡°No¡­!¡± Her scream tore out of her, her voice raw and broken, her body moving instinctively toward him even as Efreet dragged her back. Arrows of bright lights came shooting past her, hitting the doors and sizzling as they landed in the walls of the temple. She could no longer see her parents as she was pulled into another room. Meno heard the call from Angie, he turned, running through the patio, and he could see that they had Liv. He turned to look at the Traes, knowing that they were with¡­ he saw the Commander do it, he saw the advisor pushed back with the knife in his chest, then heard the breathless embrace of the knife accepted into Harold¡¯s lungs, even over the chaos of the room, he saw the Traes sprawl to try and stop it. He saw the Kryptea behind them, watching Moran¡¯s moves. They weren''t attacking him, they were watching. He heard the crackle of electricity, and looked in front of him to see the fully exo-suited soldier rushing toward him, he knew this was August, he knew that energy, that static burst. He needed to leave, he needed to get to his people, he couldn''t save the Traes now, that was not his mission. He pushed his energy into his right leg like 6 had taught him, feeling it more than ever in his anger, his frustration, in his panic, and he launched toward the primer that he had once spared against, who he had once seen as friendly. Meno was under his chin before he could react, the new tech and the energy push he had learned from 6 giving him a massive advantage. He thrust his palm up to the soldier''s helmet, he felt the neck move back and the body followed it, but Meno didn''t let it go, he held the soldier by the helmet, feeling strength that he had never possessed before. He continued to run to the door that Liv, Paba and Angie had just run through, holding August in his arm, he used the soldier as a shield as he ran across the room. The bright blue bolts of energy crackled through the room as they fired at him. August had obviously had his shield up as none penetrated him. He made it to the door, and before passing threw the Traes guard against the wall with a crack, that split the wall, he could see the rush of red and beige as one of the Kryptea made their way to him, but he flung himself through the door first, leaving the screaming and crying of the Traes and their guests in the room behind. He was greeted by Angie, who had just thrown a small ball at the door that he had come from, ¡°Move!¡± she bellowed, and Meno saw the homemade tech grenade fly through the air, hurtling toward the door as the flat tip of a Kryptea¡¯s blade made its way through the door. The tech grenade burst and pulled the walls toward it. Gravity tech, a stolen piece that Paba had taken, reversed to pull. It brought the doorway down, and pulled the Kryptea toward the centre, into the collapse of the stone walls. It gave a hollow sound like a loud drop of water hitting a flat surface, as the open air swallowed the space around it, bringing a crashing down as the stone crumbled, releasing a wave of dust that dirtied the air, with only flashes of light as bolts of light shout through the room, illuminating it blue. The walls around them cracked and burst with sound, showering them with more dust. Meno saw Paba still holding onto Liv, their backs up against the wall, who was pale as a ghost, her eyes wide, and mouth fixed in an aghast expression. Efreet was standing over two Traes Guards at his feet as he knelt down in the corridor shooting a rifle down the hallway. They had been attacked too, by their own people. Efreet was with them though, he had remained loyal. Paba looked up at him, her face covered in dust and her eyes wide open, but she was tracking him well, she was still focused, realised Meno. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± he said to them, helping Paba with Liv staying low in the strobing blue cloud of the corridor. He saw Efreet glance back at them, he gave Meno a nod to confirm his allegiance, and then he felt Angie brush past him, a rifle now in her hands as she began firing down the hall, covering Efreet. ¡°Get to the cache,¡± she said as she peered down her barrel firing, Efreet now joining her again. The room was blocked off behind them, and they needed to make their way forward three doors ahead. Angie said something to Efreet who was standing on the opposite side of the corridor to him and he rolled over to her side, allowing a path for Meno and Paba to drag Liv with them. ¡°The Traes guards attacked us,¡± said Paba as she moved down the corridor at a swift pace, keeping low, but the other two were drawing the fire well. ¡°Moran killed Harold,¡± Meno said breathlessly, taking most of Liv¡¯s weight. She really was in shock. ¡°The Kryptea are also on their¡­ I think the Kryptea are with them,¡± he said, trying to piece everything that he had seen. ¡°I think I killed August¡±, he said suddenly, feeling cold, the realisation sinking in. his body shivered, and he swallowed painfully, feeling how dry his mouth had become. He saw Angie glance over to him, but she didn''t stop firing, ¡°Later,¡± said Paba with a level of seriousness that was not usual to her as she pushed the door ahead of her open and allowed Meno and Paba to go through. She followed in quickly and started to go through the bag. Meno hadn''t been with her when they dropped off the kit. Meno looked to the door and saw Efreet come in and immediately make his way to the open window, which Meno realised belonged to an office, perhaps Pac¡¯s office. It was large, with the same setup as their apartments, a long open window which had a view of the edge of the city, and the mountain that the temple was carved into. Angie then came into the room back first, still firing with her right hand, pulling something from her exo suit with her left, and Meno saw three black labelled tech grenades. More gravity grenades. She threw them down the corridor and then closed the door. She immediately turned to them and Meno saw that Paba was frantically moving her hands across a datapad, Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°You good?¡± the old soldier said to Paba, as Meno heard the strange hollow drop sound outside of the room, and then another two after that. The walls shook and more dust dropped onto them, he heard and felt crumbling and realised that the passageway must have been collapsing. ¡°Coming up now¡± she answered with a level of calm that he hadn''t expected. Efreet was looking at Liv, checking her for injuries. She was completely catatonic now. ¡°Efreet, what are they saying on the comms?¡± ¡°The temple has been breached by the YF and exo-suits. We¡¯re in a siege,¡± he said and Meno noted that his voice was alarmingly calm, and again, it sounded different. He didn''t seem to question that they had a plan to get Liv out, nor was he getting in their way at all. ¡°It¡¯s a fucking set-up, they¡¯re using encrypted speech out there, they were prepared for this¡± ¡°It was Moran¡±, Meno said, and this seemed to be enough for Angie, as she strained her ear just slightly to the door, it seemed that some guards had gotten through. ¡°They¡¯ve labelled us enemies of the Traes, they say that we attacked the Traes and that we are kidnapping Liv¡± Efreet continued, his hand up to his helmet, clearly receiving orders from the Traes comms. Liv, thought Meno, he had never heard him say Liv before. ¡°They¡¯re getting orders to capture us, not kill¡± Meno felt Paba passing something to him, across Liv who was loosely holding onto his arm. He grabbed it and felt the pack of small homemade grenades. Each labelled with a different colour, ¡®Red is a bang-bang, white, smoke and the black is a reversed gravity bomb and blue is an outie gravity bomb¡¯ she had told him. He tucked the small tech devices into the chest pocket of the exo suit. ¡°That¡¯s good at least,¡± said Paba, ¡°They¡¯re here¡±, she said, standing and moving over to the window, and Meno saw a dozen or so floating square platforms, the same ones that Liv had used during her speech at the Prelude Gala. A number of them floated up and shifted vertically lining up like a wall to cover the window, providing a shield against the outside. The rest flew into the room, and Paba quickly took position on one of them, gesturing the rest to follow, ¡°Get on, we are going to use these to go down the side of the temple¡±, she said to Efreet and Liv. Meno still had hesitations about this plan, but they didn''t have any other options now. He was glad that Paba had been able to call them up this high, he knew that she had been worried about range. It seemed that this contingency was their only option now though. Efreet moved Liv onto one, and she looked around with tears in her eyes, questioning what was happening. Angie had just finished placing some tech on the door, using medical patches to make them stick, and then moved hurriedly over to where Meno had now joined them on the square platforms. They took off and drifted over the balustrade, into the open air outside of the room. Meno suddenly saw the massive drop down the side of the temple and felt his stomach lurch. The rest of the platform panels moved around them, covering them like a boxy shell from above and to the sides. Angie crouched and held her rifle out, aiming into the room. He looked at Paba who had pulled her pendant off and pushed it onto the datapad, and they began to descend. Liv let out a whimper. Meno looked back into the room as the balcony barrier raised in front of him and saw two guards breach the room, ¡°Cover,¡± said Angie, holding her arms over Meno and Paba who had Liv and Efreet behind them, and in a second the tech that she had placed on the door exploded in a brilliant flare of fire, shooting flames from the open window over their heads, one of the panels above them was hit by the blast and began to drop down unsteadily, clearly having portions that were still trying to levitate, but it¡¯s weight proving too much. That wasn''t comforting. It wouldn''t take their weight if it got hit, and currently, they had two people on each. ¡°Efreet?¡± ¡°Insurgents have breached the third floor, looks like it¡¯s a firefight¡± ¡°I¡¯m seeing the same thing¡±, said Paba who flicked up her hand releasing a hologram from the datapad which showed the full schematics of the temple. ¡°They are fortifying the fourth floor with soldiers, but they could get overrun. We need to get out of the city," said Paba, she was controlled, but Meno could see the nervous energy pulsating through her. She had a shudder about her movements and voice. ¡°They¡¯ve just cut me off¡± said Efreet, touching his helmet. ¡°Pass it here, they could be tracking us through it¡±, said Paba, holding her hand out quickly, the soldier pulled back defensively, and said, ¡°I just did¡± They passed another floor and saw the room with another open balcony was thankfully empty. Angie kept her rifle facing forward, and Meno could see that Efreet was focused, his rifle in his hands too. Meno looked down through the panels that protected them down to the Agora and saw the carnage that had ensued. The sky was now lit with the dull glow of red as the buildings around the Agora cast off light from their fires. Smoke engulfed the base of the tower and he saw the chaos of people rushing into the temple, trampling over one another, screaming, fighting. He saw bodies strewn across the ground. The dull roar of voices like a raging fire. ¡°Okay, we need to get out of the city as fast as we can¡± said Angie, not looking back at them, ¡°Efreet stick with Liv, Meno you take the lead, I¡¯ll cover our back, Paba you stay as our¡­¡± she trailed off, as a strange basey tone entered into the world, like a humming that rattled. It seemed to freeze her. ¡°Fuck¡­¡± Meno followed her eyes to the right, and saw it coming down from the black sky, only visible with the reflection of the chaos below on its hull, with the faintest glimmer around it that Meno now knew was a gravity engine''s bubble. The enormous monolithic Pillar drifted over the city, towering over even the statue of Det¡¯er as it angled in and then straightened vertically to stand over the city. Meno could now hear the panic of the crowd over the humming of the thing, he heard them come back in pure terror, in a fear that he had not heard yet. ¡°Paba, get this thing to drop faster¡±, said Angie looking upon the House Pillar that stood before the goddess of this world, before the statue of Det¡¯er whose arms reached out to it in welcome, but the black Pillar, cast from steel and fire stood unyielding. Meno had seen this before, the Pillar on Gol had stood atop the mountain, implacably staring down at their little town, but this now, seeing it up closer, seeing its scale near the mountain temple, over the city now scorched with rebellion. He had gone cold, his breath had become irregular, and he almost didn''t notice Liv pulling harder at him, as though trying to climb into his arms to hide from the symbol of the House''s destruction. ¡°That thing will shoot us right out of the sky if we¡­¡± There was a thump above them and before Meno knew what was happening, he was crushed under one of the panels that had been protecting them from above. He had miraculously been able to react fast enough to place himself over Liv before the full weight of whatever it was had hit them. He heard Paba scream, he heard two shots go off before he could get the panel off, and when he did, his stomach sank further. Angie was fighting it, her arms pushing against the red skin, the beige cloth. Archon did not have her sword. ¡°Angie!¡± Meno screamed, as he watched the old soldier try and pull the Kryptea in for a head butt. Even with her tech back, it was useless, the female Kryptea pulled her head back dodging, released one of her hands and delivered a driving punch into Angie¡¯s stomach. He heard air leave her as she folded over with the force. Efreet was trying to get back up again, and Meno saw his throw his hand up in the air, and twist his wrist, and suddenly, without explanation, he was no longer looking at Efreet, but the Kryptea was standing where he had been crouching. Meno looked back to Angie and saw now that Efreet was standing where the Kryptea had been. He swung around quickly and fired three short bursts from his weapon, but the Kryptea dodged all three as she deftly moved over the panels back to them. Meno tried to reach out to push her off the panels, but he was pulled back by Liv, ¡°Not now!¡± he said, not looking at her. Paba was still screaming in fear, and then Meno felt someone thrown at him, and realised it was Efreet, the panels shifted below Meno, and he needed to regain himself as he pulled Paba closer to him. He looked back up and saw Angie¡¯s face covered in blood with the Kryptea holding her by the neck. ¡°Angie!¡± he said again struggling to free himself. She looked at him, clearly defeated, but something happened to her, and she had a sudden resurgence of spirit, her face contorting into a sneer, and she slapped the Kryptea¡¯s arm down, grabbed her around the neck and used her other arm to lock her grip around the Kryptea¡¯s neck, ¡°Get him out of here, Paba!¡± she roared, as she pulled herself and the Kryptea off of the panels. Meno¡¯s breath stopped, his world stopped, and time slowed in front of him. His arm reached out before him. He heard Paba screaming something, he felt the panels below him pull away from the tower, further into the open night sky as he watched Angie drop, Archon wrapped in her arms. He saw them sink in the air, the Kryptea struggling against Angie¡¯s unwavering strength. He felt the collection of platforms become more unstable, and drift apart as they moved further away from the temple. He saw her and Kryptea hit a patio. He felt the panel below him drop on the right-hand side, and instinctively pulled Liv and Paba toward him. The echoes of screams around him. He saw Efreet balancing on two unstable panels, reaching out to them. He felt the panels hit the ground, pulling his feet away and he snapped to, focusing on what was happening to them, focusing on protecting Paba and Liv. He stopped himself from rolling, holding both of them close to him and digging his feet into the ground. They came to a stop, the panels flying off in different directions, and he was hit with the sound of Paba sobbing, Liv was not moving but Meno quickly looked to see that her eyes were still open in sheer panic and dread. ¡°Is she alright?!¡± Efreet said running over to them before bursts of laser bursts started shooting across them, Meno covered the girls once more, trying to look up to the temple to see Angie, but he couldn''t see anything, his eyes drawn to the Pillar that loomed over the city. ¡°Get down!¡± Efreet cried as he dodged the bursts of light. Meno felt a hand rest over his shoulder, gently, calmly, he saw another hand reach over to Efreet who stretched out for it. He looked up and saw a blonde-haired man who was engulfing all of them. ¡°Worrec¡­¡± Meno felt his whole body lurch, his head spun, his eyes drifted out of focus and then they came to, in a dark room. He blinked furiously, trying to adjust to the darkness of the room. He could hear all of the heavy breathing around him, Paba''s erratic breathing through her sobs, but it was quiet outside, still. He felt Liv clench tighter. Worrec moved around them and then looked at Meno with a concerned expression, Efreet standing behind him, looking as though he had just taken a deep breath behind his helmet. Then Worrec spoke softly, ¡°You did good kid¡± Chapter 21: Meet the Houses Sonny stood by the wide, single-pane window that wrapped around his top-floor office, offering an unobstructed view of the floating island of Artelis. Below him lay sprawling fields of lush grass, distant mountain peaks, and the city nestled securely beneath. His gaze traced the supply lines leading to the military barracks on his home ship. It had taken time, but at last, the relentless stream of officials and the swarm of interlopers arriving to investigate his attack on the Lotus had receded, leaving the dark skies of Artelis clear once more and the artificial sun drifted peacefully. The intrusion had been a disruptive, unwelcome, probing into his organisation. Something he knew many had wanted to do for some time, given the opportunity only by the guise that it was in his best interest. He exhaled onto the panel of glass that misted slightly at his breath. He had just received news that Grasci, the self-proclaimed opponent of the Traes had just been shot dead during his public speech at the Sun¡¯s Rising Festival, creating the most overly dramatic death to inspire revolt of all god damned time. It would have been historic had it not been orchestrated. ¡°The Traes?¡± he asked calmly, not looking away from the lands below. ¡°From what we hear,¡± replied Jam, standing next to Top in his office, who both seemed weathered from their respective journeys to gather information in secret about what was happening on the planet. An expensive and dangerous exercise for them both, ¡°Pac and Eher have been captured, no word about the girl. It seems that Moran, the head of the Traes Guard, has arrested them after the attack on the Professor. The whole thing is a shit show¡± Jam continued with his usual cool, aloof demeanour. ¡°We have to imagine that the Dorlec have been involved from the beginning, they have had a Pillar in Yelean space for months, and two days ago another arrived and one more that was on its way was taken out in Nyambe space. It¡¯s suspected that the Eshara did that, but no confirmation just yet,¡± Sonny nodded along, already knowing, or at least suspecting that all of this was the case. This was just confirmation. A Commander arresting his charge for a crime that couldn''t have been committed without his involvement. it wasn¡¯t even a well-crafted story. ¡°So they knew this was coming, right,¡± Top continued energetically, ¡°Buddy of mine says that the Dorlec basically built up his entire campaign just to shoot him down last minute and set Det¡¯em into hysterics. Apparently, they first made contact a few years ago and funded him, so yeah, cluster fuck¡± ¡°Cluster fuck¡± said Sonny contemplatively, watching a glider cross the fields of Artelis. Traffic was going to pick up soon, schools were almost out, and the academies would start to empty, soon these fields would be filled with kids and parents enjoying their free time. ¡°They have Kryptea on the planet too, right? So Pac and Eher must have known this was coming, or something at least¡±.What were they thinking? What was Victoria thinking? By not acting swiftly, they had allowed all of this to unfold. The writing was on the fucking wall. He paused, tempering his judgment, after all, he hadn¡¯t seen this coming either, despite his extensive spy networks. Not as extensive as the Eshara¡¯s, but they hadn¡¯t caught a hint of it. Perhaps it was considered insignificant that it wasn¡¯t worth reporting? ¡°We also have reports of three guests, a former soldier, a scholar and a kid. They were the ones who helped protect Olivia Traes during the attack last week in Det¡¯em. We haven¡¯t heard anything more about them yet. They could be part of the Dorlec¡¯s plans too,¡± said Jam. Sonny could sense all eyes on him, each of them watching carefully, waiting for his reaction to the news, hoping to get some indication of what their next move would be. ¡°We reported them previously, it looks like they came from Gol, a small moon in the middle of nowhere, orbiting a small dead planet, another Dorlec testing ground perhaps. We dont know if they are Dorlec agents or if they are¡­¡± ¡°We are aware of them. They aren¡¯t with the Dorlec,¡± said Jax, to his left, interrupting Jam, her tone carrying a finality. A gift of hers, a quality well understood by both Top and Jam. They wouldn¡¯t press further. At least, not in front of her. Sharing this information with them now wouldn¡¯t be wise. Not yet. ¡°They aren¡¯t of concern,¡± Sonny said, noting the confused expressions that met his words. He understood, their role was to gather intelligence, and now they were being told that what they¡¯d uncovered was already known and unimportant. ¡°Victoria?¡± he prompted, wanting a full picture before making any calls. Her inaction was concerning. ¡°She definitely has people on the ground, we had word from inside the Eshara itself. We don¡¯t have any information on them, but they are there, probably some real cloak and dagger stuff, you know. It¡¯s all being played pretty close to the chest, even in the Eshara. She has a full division ready to raid Yeley in the wings, currently on standby. She could go full apocalyptic on the planet if she needs to,¡± Jam cleared his throat loudly, clearly aiming to get Top¡¯s attention, sensing his compatriot was perhaps being a bit too casual. Sonny didn¡¯t mind. Sonny exhaled deeply. This was a mess, and the worst part was that he literally couldn¡¯t do anything about it. If she chose to raid the planet, that would be the end for the Eshara¡ªthey¡¯d be wiped from the galactic map by the Houses, triggering retaliation from every corner. One planet with so many problems, he thought, turning the Hulfean coin in his hand. He needed to trust that she understood this, or at least still cared. She was usually politically savvy enough to stay out of such matters, to see the risk as too great. Cold logic and foresight were her hallmarks, but this felt different. This was an emotional decision. He understood the stakes, but she also needed to trust them. ¡°The meeting will start soon,¡± Jax said, nodding to Top and Jam, who bowed and began to leave the room. ¡°Good work, by the way,¡± Sonny added, wanting to offer some semblance of gratitude for what he knew must have been challenging work. They returned his gesture with pained expressions, he could see they wished they¡¯d brought better news, or at least something he hadn¡¯t already known. But they¡¯d done exactly what he required of them. He¡¯d make sure to send them a reward, money, most likely. They may have been ex-smugglers, but they still operated with the same desires. Jax waited for them to leave, then vanished from her spot, reappearing instantly beside the long stone table in the centre of his office, preparing his seat. Sonny took a final look at the stillness of Artelis outside, his gaze lifting to the slow drift of the artificial sun over the ship, before making his way over to the table. ¡°Remember, don¡¯t piss anyone off,¡± she warned. ¡°This was clearly a House''s op. There¡¯s no point fighting it here.¡± ¡°You must introduce me to your teacher one day, Jax. I think we¡¯d have a lot in common,¡± he replied, tongue in cheek. She sighed, but a smile broke through. ¡°Sometimes you just need a reminder,¡± Jax said, tapping the back of the chair for him to sit. ¡°Two minutes. You know Daddy doesn¡¯t like it when you¡¯re late.¡± ¡°Ugh, that¡¯s fucking gross, Jax. Don¡¯t say it like that,¡¯¡± he grimaced, shooing her off as he took his seat. She had prepared him a tea, reminding him yet again that he was drinking too much coffee. He scoffed, casting her a look, but she only returned an encouraging, slightly apprehensive smile. ¡°You¡¯re not sleeping in the first place, coffee won¡¯t help,¡± she chided, her tone gentle but firm. Standing behind him, as was tradition for the second-in-command during a Houses meeting. A looming spectator. He took in the quiet before the meeting began, listening to the sound of their breathing in the vast, austere office. He hated these meetings, nothing good ever came from them. The cold black stone beneath his hands never seemed to warm. Usually, he avoided taking his seat at the table and would never dare sit in any other chair. A small circular projector rose from the centre of the stone table, casting light around the other open seats. Each with their own chair, would remain physically unoccupied, save for the holographic projections that would place their occupants there. Each House Head, in possession of an identical table, held their own seat, their own position among the Houses. In moments, Sonny was joined by five others around the empty table, their images flickering to life as the projector cast their holograms into their respective seats. Distorted and incomplete, their projections strained under the interference of tangled communications across the galaxy. With the heightened security over their connection for the meeting, which strained the feed and the vast distances that the electrons were set across, there was always an imperfect image that was cast. Across from him sat Sume, an elegant woman who held the rank of Queen in Nyambe space. Through the distortion, Sonny could make out her low-cut suit and her implacable expression with a subtle smile and high raised eyebrows. She was bald, with a long neck wrapped in a thick gold dzila choker that contrasted strikingly with her dark skin. A thin white gold traced from the back of her head to halfway down her forehead, with another thicker line drawn down the centre of her lower lip. Enigmatic as ever, Sume radiated an effortless arrogance and control, but she was loved by her people, if not feared. Behind her stood her second-in-command, Solomon Toure, a man revered and feared throughout their entire region. A man with his unparalleled ability to muddle the mind and sift through thoughts, a seer of unique class. He too wore a suit that Sonny would imagine would be as flashy as his Queen¡¯s. Sume nodded genially at Sonny, and he returned the gesture. They¡¯d never had any reason to distrust each other, but they hadn¡¯t found much reason to trust each other, either. Sonny wasn¡¯t fond of the games he¡¯d heard they played, but since they hadn¡¯t affected him, he let them be. Choosing one¡¯s battles was crucial in the galaxy¡¯s political landscape. Sonny had both seats beside him empty, but to his right, a man stood rather than sat. A towering figure with his arms held behind his back as he towered over the table. This was Hardra Gilga, the Kryptea¡¯s Head from the Houses¡¯ perspective. The Kryptea had two leaders, but only Gilga was officially recognised. He was a brute, with reddish skin stretched tight across a massive chest, a stone-like nose, square jaw, and small eyes. He looked as if he¡¯d been carved from a mountainside. Unlike other Kryptea, Gilga wore his black hair long and untamed, more a wild mane than the usual slicked-back style, reminiscent of a lion. There was more to his animalistic nature than just his mane though. Instead of the customary beige cloth of his people, he wore a black military uniform, not an exo-suit, as the Kryptea had no need for such things, but a cloth uniform. The uniform didn¡¯t add anything, rather, it took away from their cultural robes, something that the Autarch no longer wanted to permit. No, this man had been integrated by the Autarch who had for two decades now been eroding their culture, their identity so that it could be more absorbed by his own throne. This was the new age Kryptea, the one born to servitude under the Autarch, the one that was being morphed into something new. A new Kryptea that wouldn''t be looking to end their servitude. Gilga was a monster, he kept the Kryptea promise of never questioning an order, but Sonny had always thought that this man enjoyed his orders. He would have gladly accepted the order to wipe out the Sha-En. Sonny thought that this was the Autarch''s goal, a new breed of soldier, hungry to prove themselves. Soldiers that could walk onto worlds, and burn all in their path. The biggest problem that Sonny had with Gilga, was that this man fucking loved it. He didn''t see this as a punishment, but an excuse to exercise his powers and play his blood sport. The second leader of the Kryptea, the one not recognised by the Houses officially, was Jurgen Krietz, an older leader from before the war who had accepted the punishment from the Autarch. He would still be in Lacedon, where he trained the youth and acted as a spiritual head to their people, though Sonny wondered how much longer that would be permitted. Hardra was the one who was in charge, who dictated the orders and served the Autarch. The official head of the Kryptea would undoubtedly be waiting for his chance to crush the spiritual head. Sonny believed he was more than capable of it. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. Hardra Gilga was not permitted to sit at the table during meetings and so needed to stand behind his chair whenever they met, the Kryptea having lost that right after their crimes against the Sha-En. He also was not permitted to have a second in command at these meetings, which, in Sonny¡¯s mind, didn''t really matter anyway. The Kryptea didn''t operate like that and could have had anyone be there, their structures still relied on absolute obedience, so they had no leaks. To Sonny''s left sat the Empty Crown, a seat that had remained vacant ever since the fall of the Sha-En. This was never brought up as something that the Houses needed to solve as an issue, and Sonny knew the general sentiment among the Royal Heads and the Autarch, was that fewer Heads to contend with was preferable. The Sha-En had once been revered as wise, popular, and powerful before their massacre by the Kryptea, qualities that made them a threat to the Autarch himself. Though this was never openly acknowledged in a House¡¯s meeting, it was well understood. At one point, it had seemed the seat might be claimed by the last Sha-En, Jinn, but he had refused it, leaving the Empty Crown. It had been left there with no further pushing, nor need to find a replacement. In fact, the Sha-En were now seen more as dangerous members of society than anyone who should be represented. Passed the Empty Crown as it had poetically been named, was Hibiki Otsu, or simply Otsu. She was the youngest House Head by a considerable margin. She rarely spoke in these meetings, usually sitting quietly with her eyes closed, nodding only when accepting orders. Honestly, the left side of the table was a real party. Otsu always wore ornate traditional clothing, thick robes wrapped around her with floral designs and what Sonny imagined were bright colours from the contrasts he saw through the distorted tangled image. Her face remained completely expressionless, her delicate features and soft lines never betraying emotion. Her House, the Oni, operated almost independently. They paid their taxes, contributed soldiers, and resources, and shared their technologies, but Sonny knew this was merely the price they paid for their autonomy. Their actions were not driven by loyalty or any sense of devotion to the Autarch, it was a calculated bargain for security. They kept to themselves, steering clear of political entanglements and focusing on their own territory, never venturing where they were not invited. Behind Otsu was Ichimaru Konen, an old warhorse of the Oni. A scar ran across half his face, stretching from his left forehead down to his neck, a mark of service and courage, inflicted by Bel himself during the war. He covered the scar with a liquid-like metal that adorned the side of his face, intricately designed with some lettering etched over his covered eye, resembling ornate armour. Konen had been part of the Oni¡¯s structure for decades, present when Otsu took over as House Head. When she had taken over from her predecessor, a man known only as Hidora. Sonny didn¡¯t know if there was any relation, but he did know they couldn¡¯t have been more different. The Oni¡¯s entire ethos had shifted when Otsu took charge, and Sonny understood not to mistake her for a mere figurehead, she had clearly enforced a cultural change when she took charge. The head of the table remained vacant, with the Royal Heads yet to arrive. Unfortunately, Sonny found himself locking eyes with the man seated next to Sume, his least favoured of the House Heads, Joseph Valentine, Head of the Dorlec and, in Sonny¡¯s opinion, one of the most despicable creatures in the galaxy. The Dorlec were all genetically modified, each implanted with the genes of their founder, simply known as Leke, a deity that lived in each of them, in their culture, giving them all a fucking god complex. Their hubris ran so deep that they rarely even mentioned Leke as their founder anymore, instead glorifying the rise of the Dorlec. In their self-proclaimed supremacy, they¡¯d begun praising themselves over their former deity-like originator. They had usurped their own beliefs with their ego. Their genetic ¡°modifications¡± didn¡¯t end there. All of them, men, women, and even children were altered to have a particular aesthetic. With slightly paler skin, especially those from Dorlec itself, where sprawling cityscapes blocked much of their star, they had fewer pores, dead-straight dark hair, and a tall, slender build meant to reflect the image of their founder. Sonny wondered if that was still the reason. To him, they were all tainted, a society that relied heavily on science and technology, relentlessly experimenting to extend their reach across the galaxy and improve themselves. The Autarch¡¯s favouritism toward them spoke volumes about the man they all served. Lacking morals, they would push any boundary, justifying their compromises with some scientific or supposedly brave explanation of necessity. Valentine, with his sharp features and lazy glare, regarded Sonny with an arrogant smirk and a slight nod. Sonny felt sick at having to acknowledge the man. Valentine¡¯s second-in-command, whom Sonny didn¡¯t know personally, but naturally was the spitting image of Valentine, which grossed Sonny out. Next to Valentine sat Sama Monoe, Head of the Vritra, a House Head Sonny knew little about, as he was relatively new compared to the others. The Vritra, positioned close to the core worlds, acted as a defensive barrier against outsiders for the core itself. They were wealthy, well-positioned, and very well-funded, they wielded considerable influence, their proximity to the core granting them closeness to the Royal Houses. Yet Sama looked like a slob, with long hair, thick stubble, and a shabby uniform, his top button undone and the sleeve slightly rolled up, but only on one arm. The only thing Sonny had heard about Sama was his reputation as a tactical genius. Despite his unkempt look, he was regarded as a formidable weapon for the Houses. Sonny imagined that behind the distorted image, that was being shown, he would see keen eyes surveying each of them. Sama always positioned himself in such a way that his face, even with the distortion, was less visible than the others as he slouched in the chair. Standing behind Sama¡¯s seat was a woman Sonny didn¡¯t recognise, an unsettling contrast to her superior. Her uniform was immaculate, her hair pulled into a tight bun, and her face set in a stern glare. She was the complete opposite of the man sitting before her. Beside Sume and across from Sonny was another empty seat, the Hulfean seat, which had remained empty in every meeting Sonny had attended, save once. The war god Locne never joined these meetings. It was widely known that he had fallen out of love with the Houses after the war, though Sonny suspected it began long before that. Despite his detachment, the Hulfean had not gone independent. Locne, aware that his House would be under threat from the others if they left, had chosen to remain a member. The Autarch would love to have the excuse to eliminate Locne, who some believed should have taken control after the war with Bel. He was a hero and the oldest and most individually powerful member of the Houses, of that there was no doubt. By the time the Houses were officially formed into what they were now, Locne had already been leading Hulf for thousands of years. The ancient, immortal war god still held a legend to those who knew about him, but the Houses had made a concentrated effort to make him seem more of a myth than anything else, never confirming his age, his power, his existence to the rest of the galaxy. Locne made this easy for them too, being a man who preferred to be left out of the public image. It had been only some twenty-odd years since the House¡¯s campaign to disprove the existence of the most viable candidate to stand against the Autarch, but Sonny knew that it had worked, hearing members of his own house wonder if the legends of Locne were true or not. The reason the Locne didn''t go to war with the Houses was the same reason that the Houses didn''t go to war with Locne. The cost would be incalculable. Put simply, it wasn''t worth the expense or effort to destroy him. Nevertheless, Sonny knew that this risk was constantly under measurement, and constantly being considered. Sonny looked to the head of the table, waiting for the arrival of the Royal Heads, his father, Rene Matise, and Anna Serifine. Each carried the namesake of their House as a direct descendant of its original Head. They were true royalty within the Houses, the only ones born to these roles, a legacy almost unheard of for centuries, even before the Houses had joined in a formal alliance under the Autarch. The third Royal Head, Philippe Le''Marc, was probably the most dangerous man in the entire Eleven Houses, and he arrived first. His hologram appeared out of thin air in Sonny¡¯s office, taking a seat as the light anchored to his form. Sonny felt the tension around the table rise. Middle-aged, fit, and good-looking, with a prominent nose and tightly curled hair, Le''Marc¡¯s appearance belied the true monster within. He gave a smile to the rest as he sat, to which he gained a nervous nod from some. The Nissar¡¯ra were an old House, and rose to the rank of Royal House because of the work that they¡¯d done. Shadow work, dark dealings, the type of work the Houses actively told the public did not exist. The Nissar¡¯ra gathered information, without being questioned, they moved entire systems into place and played the long game of power. If they were not loyal to the Autarch, Sonny imagined that they would have been wiped out long ago. Sonny suspected it was Le''Marc who was playing the Dorlec in this Yelean game. Le''Marc was the kind of man you prayed would never cross your path, regardless of who you were. If the Autarch ordered it, he could collapse a House overnight, and with his network of spies and highly trained specialists, that threat was no idle one. The masked figure standing behind Le''Marc embodied everything one needed to know about the Nissar''ra, besides Le''Marc himself, no other ever showed their face. He looked at Sonny who gave him a compulsory bow of the head. Sonny may have been a House Head and the son of a Royal Head of the Houses, but he was not in a position to stand against another Royal Head. Not in any legitimate way. Anna Serifine came into focus next, taking her seat to the right of where his father would sit. The light caught her in closer focus than the rest, which told Sonny that she was closer to him than the rest were, which was interesting. Given that he was nowhere near the core, and she rarely left the Autarch¡¯s planet, Amorim. He made a note of it. Despite her age, Anna retained the beauty of her youth, now appearing as a delicate elder, though Sonny knew her position as Head of the Serifine House was unmatched, no one in her House could compare to her. She carried an aura of warmth, her gentle smile passing over the other House Heads. Her grey hair stood out in the distorted image, along with her elegant flowing dress, which he imagined would be orange or bright yellow, her favoured colours. She had long been the most formidable diplomat of the Houses and Sonny knew that she was his father''s closest advisor. As she appeared, she gave Sonny a playful wink, which he smiled at. She might have been the only person within the Houses he trusted, even if from afar. Behind Anna stood Janus Uul, tall, blonde, with a fresh face and kindness that made her appear almost out of place at such a meeting. Yet Janus had been by Anna¡¯s side since childhood and knew this world all too well. They all stood as his father entered, the light clinging to his form as he moved behind his chair. Though there were three Royal Heads, Rene Matise held the title of Royal High Lord Head, a designation Sonny often joked about, telling his father that surely they would run out of titles to give him one day. Behind him, partially outside the hologram¡¯s frame, stood Yoren Pa, his father¡¯s second-in-command and a man Sonny knew well. Small-framed, his hair now greying, Yoren Pa had served his father even before Rene ascended as Head of House Matise. Yoren Pa was a man of significant knowledge, wisdom and competence, and someone who, though not holding the rank of House Head, was held in the same esteem. Despite not being blood-related, Sonny and Rene Matise shared a similar physical build. Rene was tall and broad-shouldered, with thick arms and a physique that still resembled that of a soldier. His hair had turned white, and the deep lines etched across his face only made him look more intense than ever. Standing tall, he looked down at the table, taking a deep breath as he surveyed everyone present, offering no special recognition to Sonny. ¡°Thank you, take a seat, please¡± Sonny could tell that he was not happy about something. To many people''s surprise, Rene Matise was not a man incapable of light-hearted joyous things, but this time he seemed more intense, more stressed, and it sent ripples down the dark stone table. He did know that his father did not like having meetings for no reason, but also knew that they were due a meeting and had supposed that this was just a formality. He knew that the meeting would not be about his own attack, his father would not do anything like that. ¡°In regard to the new recruitment efforts of independent worlds¡­¡± Sonny had to stop himself from scoffing and caught a satisfied glance from Valentine. They considered what was happening on Yeley as recruitment, as fucking recruitment, he thought trying to contain himself. ¡°We are joined today by Adam Xious, who is acting as an emissary of the Autarch¡±, Rene announced, extending an arm to the far side of the long table where there was no seat, only for the holographic image of Xious to appear. The room stilled. Sonny felt a shiver run up his spine as Adam Xious, or simply Xious, came into view. He heard Jax shift uncomfortably beside him. Xious was a man with no equal. A man who held no title within the Houses, no declared allegiance to the Autarch, he existed alone, an entity unto himself, a swaying force that was called upon only when control needed to be taken, when his power needed to be exerted. Xious was tall and well-built, radiating a casual elegance and disarming charm. His demeanour was one of cool temperance, that exuded control and measure. His high, pronounced cheekbones, square jaw that tapered sharply at the chin, aligning perfectly with his dignified nose and his deep-set eyes met each gaze with a gentle yet piercing acknowledgement. His closely shaved head and polished forehead added to his sharp, direct presence. Dressed in a fine dark suit, worn with a familiarity few could afford, Xious commanded attention with every word he spoke, it was with a rich and deep voice, each syllable measured, demanding attention. ¡°Thank you, Royal High Lord Matise,¡± Xious said with a softened smile, placing his holographic hands on the table, which, where he was seated, must have matched the exact height of Sonny¡¯s own Head¡¯s table. ¡°I am afraid that it is with terrible news that I join you all here today,¡± he began, not acknowledging his connection to the Autarch. ¡°There has been word from the Call, it seems that the seal that binds Bel, has weakened¡± Chapter 22: The Farmhouse Meno took in the dark room, blinking to try to steady his vision. Liv¡¯s grip on his arm remained tight, grounding him, while Paba frantically pulled up the datapad, its glow casting faint illumination across the space. His eyes followed Worrec as he moved toward an old, worn leather wing-back chair at the side of the room. With a subtle gesture, Worrec directed Efreet to take a seat across the room before lowering himself into the worn chair. He gazed across at each of them, lingering on Liv for just a moment longer than the others, Efreet crossed the room to the small kitchen area, where a small wooden table and a few chairs were arranged. He sat in one of the chairs, without removing the helmet that still obscured his face. Meno¡¯s gaze lingered on him, he would get to that. Turning toward the small open window, Meno caught sight in the distance of the burning city of Det¡¯em. The low, resonant hum like thunder, coming from it. ¡°She¡¯s still alive, she¡¯s still¡­Meno!¡± Paba said frantically, tugging at his arm and then shoving her datapad in front of him, ¡°Look, she¡¯s still alive, Meno¡± she repeated, ¡°We need to go back, we need to get her¡±. Her face, covered with dust from their escape, now held thick lines tracked in them, where her tears had fallen. Her hand clutched a pendant tightly, as she held onto it for a moment before slipping it into her pocket. He steadied himself, taking a moment to assess himself before turning his attention to Paba. Her red-rimmed eyes glowed and her lower lip quivered as she clutched the datapad. He saw the heart monitor on the datapad beating, that must have been coming from her tech. He took in a deep breath, but he wouldn''t allow himself to be relieved just yet. She was in the temple still, surrounded by guards, and they had barely made it out alive themselves. ¡°We¡¯re not leaving her behind, Paba,¡± he said firmly, which released a relieved sob from Paba before she nodded sharply, spilling more tears down her cheeks. He looked around him, taking in their surroundings. They were in a small, humble farmhouse, far from the city. He could see the burning from the window, across the black fields. He could hear the rumbling of the fires and the chaos. Like a storm. He glanced at Liv, whose grip on his arm had not loosened once, if anything, it was tighter now than ever. Her wide eyes, filled with fear, were locked on Worrec standing in front of them, behind him, Efreet remained seated, his helmet still on. ¡°That was quite a¡­¡± Worrec started, ¡°Where are we?¡± Meno asked, not needing to hear what Worrec would say. ¡°Where in Locne¡¯s lost fucking sock have you been?!¡± added Paba, pointing at him, ¡°Why couldn''t you get us from the temple, with Angie? You were right there!¡± she snarled, Meno didn''t interrupt her, he watched Worrec who held his hands up. Meno didn''t know what to expect from him, whatever he would say would be some half-truth anyway, some manipulation to get them to do what he needed while not giving them any answers. He kept his hands up as he answered, ¡°A small farm on the outskirts of Det¡¯em,¡± he replied gazing at Liv, a glint of concern flashed in his eyes. She dug her nails into his arm as Worrec spoke. ¡°It¡¯s safe,¡±. ¡°I expect a whole lot of shit from you Worrec,¡± spat Paba, ¡°But this is ridiculous, you send us here for some unknown fucking reason, then we find out it¡¯s some kind of fucking mission and then you grab us without Angie! Who do you think you are?!¡± she was panting now, but he could see that the fire was nowhere close to burning out. Worrec took a breath, his hands still up, but otherwise looking relatively calm. Meno looked at Efreet in the corner and spoke to Worrec. ¡°Who is he?¡± asked Meno, and he saw Paba drop her glare from Worrec, to look between Meno and Efreet. Worrec paused and then smiled as though impressed. The guard''s head shifted slightly at his mention. Efreet had been acting really strangely, he had been too calm through all of it. Meno had seen him during the attack in Det¡¯em, he had heard Angie¡¯s assessment of him as Efreet had been on the same side of the glider as she was. During the struggle, he had been brave, even valiant by putting his life on the line. In their escape, however, he had been cold, calm, and efficient. Meno had also seen him swap positions with the Kryptea on their descent. That wasn''t tech that Efreet had, at least to his knowledge, and Efreet was no primer. Paba was moving her head between Meno and Worrec, who merely smiled at Meno. ¡°Go on, take it off,¡± Worrec said, his eyes not moving from Meno. The Traes guard''s helmet came off and Meno got his confirmation. That was not Efreet. Liv shuddered next to him, a cold shiver, Meno imagined, Paba stilled frozen by the sight of this unknown man. This new man had dull eyes, and rounded features, his sweat-strewn hair was a dark blonde, with a small nose and sharp chin. He looked at Meno with intrigue, "No," slipped from Liv, barely more than a whisper. ¡°What the fuck?!¡± roared Paba to the ceiling, her voice breaking slightly, as it all became too much. ¡°Was it when I called her Liv?¡± he said, a voice with a completely different tone to the one he had been using. The voice that he had convinced them with. ¡°You also changed positions with that Kryptea¡±, said Meno, now holding onto Liv¡¯s arm to try and comfort her. Her eyes were fixed on the man that she had been trusting to be her friend, her protector. The man smiled and nodded, as though he had been caught out in a fun game. Meno thought he didn''t seem to be taking pleasure in it, but he also didn''t seem apologetic either. ¡°Who are you?!?¡± asked Paba, her voice staying at a remarkably high octave. ¡°He works for Victoria Sequeria,¡± said Worrec, ¡°He¡¯s fine, he was sent to protect Olivia, which he did¡± ¡°Who is Victoria Sa¡­kw¡­¡± ¡°The Queen of fucking Midnight?!¡± screamed Paba and her face went rigid. Then, her voice dropped, steady and cold, ¡°Worrec, I¡¯m going to kill you.¡± The sudden calm in her tone made the threat seem far more dangerous. The blonde man raised his hands once more, but this time, a faint smirk tugged at his lips, as if he was trying hard to conceal. ¡°Why?¡± asked Meno, looking between Worrec and the man, ¡°Why would the Queen of¡­why?¡± his head was spinning, thoughts being sent off in different directions all at once. ¡°Is Efreet alive?¡± Liv squeaked weakly, peeping from behind Meno¡¯s arm. Her voice was unsteady. ¡°Yes,¡± he said turning to his wrist to look at the data on his forearm, ¡°He woke up not long ago. I left him directions to find me when he woke up. I wasn''t expecting all of that, you know,¡± he said flicking his eyes to the window, ¡°But he is alive, I left him with nutrient packs in his barracks. He would have run straight to the Traes apartments. He¡¯s probably reporting to the Commander now - I don¡¯t like that commander by the way -¡± he added as though this was a completely casual conversation, ¡°He will tell them someone was impersonating him. So, they will be on high alert. I would imagine that Liv,¡± smiling softly as he glanced at Liv. She flinched under his gaze, and for a moment, regret flickered in his expression, ¡°...Is still a priority target of theirs. So, we really should get out of here,¡± he added, looking over to Worrec. ¡°We¡¯re not leaving without Angie!¡± burst Paba, saying it to this new man, but then looked to Worrec, her eyes blazing. ¡°You sent us into this, you told us we would be safe, now you have to actually do something¡±, The tattooed man glanced at her, his eyes then flicked to Meno, ¡°She¡¯s right, we are getting Angie one way or another,¡± Meno said defiantly. He now felt a slight change in himself, from the first time that he had met with Worrec all that time ago on Gol. He had been scared, and too trusting. He had been so much younger two months ago. Worrec looked at him with interest, tilting his head to the side. ¡°How would you do it?¡± he asked quietly, ¡°That¡¯s a pillar out there, Meno, with a ton of Traes guards, and Kryptea, and we just saw¡­¡± ¡°What¡¯s your name?¡± Meno asked standing up and looking at the imposter who was now acting like they knew one another. ¡°Ko,¡± he replied simply, slightly lowering his head. ¡°Ko¡¯s a stupid name, and you know that isn''t what we were asking you, who the hell are you?!¡± spat Paba petulantly. Meno raised his hand to calm her, and potentially stop her from doing anything else. His eyes passed over to Worrec, who seemed to be watching them with a level of entertainment, he was pulling on his bottom lip, the faint smirk on his face. The room rang with silence as Ko looked to Worrec, almost as though asking permission on whether or not to answer. Worrec subtly nodded and the man looked at Paba and Meno, as though ready to recite something. ¡°I am an infiltration specialist, trained in the core worlds before defecting. I operate as a freelancer of sorts. I am currently employed by the Eshara under the direct instruction of Victoria Sequiera. I was sent here to infiltrate the Traes guard and protect Lady Olivia Traes, and if the circumstances required, evacuate her from the planet¡± ¡°You''re a spy?¡± asked Paba. Ko nodded, not showing any emotion. Meno noticed that Liv was peering at him, her eyes fixed. ¡°Worrec¡­¡± said Paba, her hand held over her dust-covered eyes, her head in the air, ¡°Why do the Eshara want Liv?¡± Meno asked, feeling like this piece of information would somehow tie everything together in some unfathomable way, and to his surprise, Ko looked at Liv, who touched Meno¡¯s arm still trying to regain herself, and said softly, ¡°Leave it, I know why¡± She sounded almost resigned to something about this. Meno took in a deep breath, looking over at the spy and said begrudgingly, ¡°Thank you for your help, Ko,¡± he seemed as taken aback as anyone else in the room. ¡°You helped us, I appreciate that, but please don¡¯t act like we know each other¡± to which Ko simply nodded, as though accepting an order. ¡°How would you do it?¡± Worrec repeated, eyes still fixed on Meno. It was as though he had followed their conversation just to know when he could ask once more. Meno bit back the irritation that he felt toward the man, and said, ¡°...I¡¯m not sure yet, but we will find a way¡± ¡°I used the temple systems to get us out, I can still get into them if we can get to a console in the temple,¡± said Paba quickly, sitting up from the seat with Liv, who, after a moment of fluster, sat back deep into the chair. ¡°I can control most of the temple¡± ¡°So you did use it?¡± said Worrec with a grin at Paba, who immediately retreated in her bluster somewhat, her hand reflexively raising to her chest where the pendant usually sat, then remembering it was in her pocket. Meno now knew that it wasn''t just a pendant. She had used it on the data pad during the escape, but he didn''t know what it did. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°There!¡± said Meno, ¡°And I¡¯m sure you have some kind of vaguely valuable insights that you can share¡± Meno challenged Worrec who smiled wide now. ¡°I might¡± he said, his eyes taking all of Meno in, as though he was rapt with everything that Meno was saying. ¡°Ko here still has a bomb in the temple¡± Meno saw Ko give Worrec a flummoxed glare at this, ¡°You can¡¯t be serious? You aren¡¯t actually going to let them go?¡± Worrec didn''t answer Ko¡¯s question. ¡°She would have undoubtedly been taken to the Traes apartments for questioning. The Dorlec will be arriving there soon, they love a victory parade. There will be a ton of guards between you and her, all with weapons, and considerably better soldiers than the Traes guard. That¡¯s a lot of risk for one lady, kid. You three prepared for that?¡± ¡°My parents¡± whimpered Liv, seeming to regain some of herself. ¡°And Lady Olivia¡¯s parents¡± added Worrec, who seemed to once again linger on her for a moment, ¡°Ambitious,¡± Meno recognised that he wasn¡¯t putting his own hand up to help, again. ¡°Some of the guards may still be loyal to me,¡± said Liv weakly but fighting to get herself up. The hope of saving her parents seemed to give her strength. ¡°Ooh, sorry no, you aren''t part of the three, Princess. I was referring to¡­¡± he pointed at Meno, Paba and Ko, who looked irritated but didn''t say anything in protest, ¡°You, unfortunately, will need to be leaving with me. This whole thing was to keep you safe. Really wouldn''t be very responsible of me to let you go out into the¡­¡± ¡°What about you?¡± Meno¡¯s words cut through the room. He didn''t actually expect a reasonable answer from him, he barely expected an answer from him, and he saw Worrec smile again. The storm of Det¡¯em rang through the lands around them, a present reminder of what they would be facing. ¡°I want to help,¡± said Liv indignantly, hesitantly standing herself for the first time. Worrec watched her with care that he was not showing to anyone else, ¡°I get that, but not happening.¡± ¡°I order you to take me back there¡±, she said, her eyes now menacing. Worrec smiled at this and stood up, he walked over to her, bending over so that he was face to face with her. He was still smiling as he did so, ¡°Well, I don¡¯t work for you, Princess,¡± he said letting the final word hang. Meno studied the tattoos on Worrec¡¯s neck and chest. These were on the right-hand side, which meant, in ¡®Worrec¡¯ logic, that this was the same ¡®version¡¯ he had met a few days previous. A twist of letters and symbols that Meno didn''t recognise, all overlapping and crossing. This was the same ¡®version¡¯ that had met with him in his hospital room. He had been here the entire time. ¡°Not this time, kid¡± Worrec replied to Meno¡¯s question about whether he would help himself. He stood to his full height, which was about a head taller than Meno, ¡°I¡¯m kind of a big deal, it would only cause more problems, and let¡¯s be honest, you have enough of them right now¡± he said, which confirmed Meno¡¯s thoughts on him, ¡°That being said, I can help with a plan. With your tenacity¡± he said with another grin, ¡°And Paba¡¯s, what did you call it again, Hal?¡± Paba exhaled, looking between Meno and Liv, and she seemed to decide something within herself. Her face still marked with tears, she held out the pendant. ¡°Firstly, I¡¯m sorry for not telling you about this. This isn''t just a pendent, and Hal wasn''t my boyfriend¡± she said looking between Meno and Liv, she looked terrified, ¡°This is HAL. He¡¯s an intelligence that I built and¡­that they found out about,¡± she showed it to Meno, ¡°Heuristic Adaptive Lattice, HAL for short. He¡¯s¡­It¡¯s an intelligence that can act like a brain for any system it has access to. Basically, it becomes the brain to any networked neural system¡± ¡°I dont¡­What does that mean?¡± Meno stood there stunned, looking at the small black rectangular pendant in her hand. He then looked up to Paba¡¯s face, filled with anguish and apology. He knew that it was trivial, he knew that it wasn''t what he should be focusing on right now, but, why had she kept this from them? Why did she lie about it? He looked back at the pendant, trying to focus on what was important right now, casting his own disappointment aside. He saw that Paba was crying once more, tears falling freely now. He took it in, ignoring her plea for forgiveness. That thing, that little thing was a¡­brain? Angie had asked Meno if he had known why Paba had been saved by Worrec, but he always just said that he didn''t know, never really giving it much thought. Angie had said that he was saved as a final request by Mr. Dimitri by the sounds of it, but she had wondered at Paba. She had also respected Paba¡¯s privacy enough not to probe, but now Meno knew. It was this, this small little piece of tech, this brain, and the woman who made it. Meno now wondered if that was wrong of them. Did they just accept that Paba was¡­he shook his head. ¡°It¡¯s also the most illegal thing on this planet,¡± said Worrec with delight, ¡°The Autarch banned those things centuries ago. It will give you a hell of an advantage, but Pab¡¯s dear¡± he said holding his hand out, ¡°You know we will need a copy, especially if you are going back in there¡±, Meno suddenly felt a rage building up in him. ¡°You¡¯re squeezing her?¡± Meno said standing between Paba and Worrec, who pulled his head back and smiled. He steadied himself and then sighed, ¡°There are some awful things happening in the galaxy Meno, things that force people''s hands. Paba here has created something that can help with that. She knew why we saved her. Trust me, I would prefer if all of you just got out of here and I didn''t have to do this, but I see that isn''t going to happen, so all I can do is make sure that I make the best of this situation while giving you what help I can,¡± ¡°It¡¯s fine, Meno,¡± said Paba softly, sniffing, ¡°We made a deal, you can have it,¡± Worrec took a moment, softening as he looked at Paba, taking the pendant. He turned back to his chair, ¡°Alrighty then, let¡¯s get to work,¡± he said sitting back in his chair, which seemed to release an irritated sigh from Ko. There had been frantic movement in the room initially as preparations began. Ko had moved over to Paba and Liv, which had caused some initial tension, but it seemed to be set aside, to pull off saving Angie and the Traes. To Meno¡¯s surprise, it was Liv who seemed to broker the peace between them. Meno noticed that she had a bite to her words on a few occasions, however. She may have recognised the need for him, but even with her diplomatic powers, she wasn''t able to keep the betrayal far from thought. Paba, watched Ko with keen focus, her eyes glancing over to Worrec every now and then. Whenever the spy got close to the pendant, that Worrec had handed back to Paba after seeming to copy it to another small device, she seemed to clutch her pendant tightly. Worrec paid no attention to this at all, and Meno wondered if it was because he now had his copy and that was all that he was after. Meno sat in the far corner of the room, knowing that there was not much that he could assist with. Liv knew the temple better than he did, Ko seemed to have a near-perfect understanding of its layout too, and was an infiltration specialist. Paba helped with the communications, the grenades and the plan. She had also said when they started to plan their assault initially, Meno was more of a ¡®meat and potatoes¡¯ kind of guy. It had stung when she had said it, but after realising that he didn''t have much to contribute to the plan, he accepted it. Still, it frustrated him being on the sidelines, waiting to hear what he needed to do, he would have felt far more comfortable being a part of this, and being able to help. So, without being able to help, he took his spot at the small kitchen table, in a position where he could watch all of them, and have a view of the smouldering city through the window. The loud pops that ran over the hills to this farmhouse had become less frequent, but the hysterical screams and shouting hadn''t. The city was still in a panic as chaos reigned. Meno carefully watched them, listening to each step of the plan, ensuring he didn''t miss anything important, or making sure that he didn''t go one way while the rest went the other. He was finding it hard to focus on a singular thing though. His mind was torn between Angie, and what she must be going through. The rest had voted against him when he recommended they move quickly, saying that developing a plan first, was the most important thing. He wanted to save her now, he didn''t want her to be scared, or suffer any pain, especially not for him. Her act still shocked him. She didn''t even hesitate. She had acted exactly as he thought she would have, heroically. He blamed himself for letting her. He was also having his attention pulled by Worrec, who watched over them with curiosity, as though watching kids put together a school project. Only offering small interjections here and there, to say that that can¡¯t really be done, and ¡®perhaps you could try this¡¯. They still knew pretty much nothing about him, and from what they did know, no true picture could be painted. Meno imagined that he had mentioned truths about himself, but they were all wrapped up in so many layers of lies, that it would be impossible to know when you had uncovered one. There was only one thing that he did know for sure, and that was Worrec was no ordinary soldier. He knew things, he had a way about him that exuded a calm that didn''t make any sense, as if he knew nothing bad could happen to him. There was also a strange tension between him and Liv, not something said, but something that was left unspoken. He looked at her with sadness, and she with a level of confusion. Almost like she was trying to figure something out about him. Who wasn''t, he thought. But the thing that was pulling most of his attention, and he judged himself for having feelings like this during a time like this, was Paba. He and Angie had figured that there must have been more to her past than she was letting on. They had, after all, found out that she wasn''t a pilot some time ago, but they thought that that was just a cover so that she could have escaped the Manin University where she had been studying. They believed her when she said that she needed to leave because of her ex. They had trusted her, with that and with so much else. Meno had told her pretty much everything about himself, Angie had let her in, which Meno imagined didn''t happen very often, even in Angie''s younger days. Why did Paba not feel like she couldn''t trust them? ¡°Don¡¯t be too harsh on her kid¡±, said Worrec¡¯s voice from behind Meno, who turned to see the blonde man resting with his chin on his folded forearms on the table. Meno must have spaced out and didn''t even notice him take a seat. ¡°She didn''t have what you had growing up. Trust is new to her,¡± ¡°Did you just read my mind?¡± Meno whispered, feeling cold. ¡°What? No, your face kid. You¡¯ve been boring a hole into her for about twenty minutes now,¡± he said scrunching his forehead, ¡°You¡¯re not exactly an enigma¡±. Meno shrugged off the remark and looked back at Paba, who was still frantically tapping away at the datapad, taking instructions from Ko, and every so often, turning to Liv, who she seemed to be in a separate deep conversation with. ¡°Do you think we can pull this off?¡± Meno said, this time not turning to Worrec. ¡°Doesn¡¯t matter what I think. If you think you can, you can, if you think you can¡¯t, you''re fucked,¡± he responded almost immediately. Not his first time giving advice like this, thought Meno. He took a few moments, watching the other three, ¡°I trust them,¡± he said the words almost as a reflex, but only upon saying it realised that it was the truth. Perhaps he knew that he didn''t have any other options, but when he looked at Paba, he knew that he could trust her, even if she lied about HAL, she must have felt that it was necessary to. Maybe in Paba¡¯s own mind, she was protecting them in some Paba-esque way. He had no reason not to trust Liv, but she wouldn''t be on the mission, but when he looked at Ko, he didn''t quite understand it, but he felt like he could trust the spy. Maybe only to some extent, but he had genuinely helped them and gotten them to safety. He had gotten them out. ¡°Then trust yourself too, and you have a good chance,¡± ¡°Is this all part of the test?¡± ¡°This is a brand new one,¡± he said, his chin still resting on his forearms, There was a thought that Meno had not been able to get out of his head, not since the day that he had left Gol. perhaps it was more of a hope than anything else, a child''s dream from a book that he would read and re-read. A feeling, or perhaps a suspicion that he couldn''t drop. A story of a man who came to avenge his people. The story of a being, an entity that controlled immense power, and an understanding. An enigmatic figure that was drenched in speculation and intrigue. Someone who people could not decide on was either real or just a story. A tale of a boy that Meno had read of hundreds of times in Swan¡¯s notebooks, and had exhausted the people in his small town with questions about. He didn''t turn to Worrec when he asked and made sure that his voice was quiet when he said it. ¡°Are you Jinn?¡± the man behind him chortled, not saying anything for a moment, and then said, ¡°No,¡± offering nothing else. ¡°Okay, we have it,¡± said Paba, standing. She had a fierceness about her now, a palpable determination. She walked over to Meno, her eyes glancing momentarily over to Worrec behind him. ¡°Firstly¡±, said Liv, walking in quick lockstep behind the much shorter Paba. She had seemed to regain herself, back to the dominant force that Meno knew she could be. She looked at Worrec when she spoke, ¡°You will only take me once we have them back¡±, she said firmly, ¡°All of them¡±. Meno didn''t turn, but watched Liv, her eyes no longer filled with tears threatening to fall, much like Paba¡¯s, they now burned with a quiet glow of fire within them. ¡°Hmm,¡± was all that Worrec said, ¡°I will not come with you any other way¡± ¡°Fine,¡± said Worrec, and Meno could tell that he had pulled himself up from resting on his forearms. ¡°But I call it if I see that they aren''t getting out,¡± he said, and before Liv could respond, he added, ¡°Good. Deal. Paba, you were saying?¡± Paba, blinked for a moment, seeming to try and decide whether she should speak up on Liv¡¯s behalf or not. Ko remained silent behind the two. Paba cleared her throat, ¡°Meno, you and Ko are going to go in alone,¡± ¡°Okay,¡± said Meno nodding, trusting her, ¡°How are we getting in?¡± ¡°Through the front door¡± Chapter 23: Broken Angie hit the stone floor face-first, a sharp impact that sent blood spurting from her nose. Her hands were tied behind her back, leaving her unable to catch herself. She wheezed and coughed as blood filled her throat, a pain piercing in her side, where she had cracked her ribs on the balcony edge. Even with the exo-suit, the drop was still brutal. She may have been holding that fucking Kryptea in a headlock, but she had managed to move Angie in the air and use her as a landing pad. The Kryptea had then dragged her up the temple steps into the Traes'' apartments. ¡°Well done, Archon,¡± Moran¡¯s voice held a level of pomp, smug satisfaction unmistakable. Meno was right, Angie thought, breathing heavily against the floor. It was him. He had betrayed the Traes. All Angie hoped was that the idiots were already off the planet, she knew that Paba could find a way off this rock by a ship and that Lady Olivia would hopefully have a way to get one. There was still a chance that they could get Lady Olivia free of all this. She used her head as leverage, as she pushed herself up to her haunches and looked up at the Commander of the Traes Guard. His black moustache curled in a smile, glancing down at her, he looked terrible, like a man torn. Her gaze drifted around the patio of the Traes apartments, the room was a wreck. Tables once set for honoured guests lay overturned, glass shards and scattered food littering the floor. Through the balcony window, she caught sight of the Pillar looming above the city, framed by the hands of Det¡¯em. Behind Moran, she saw the Traes holding each other, both looking desperate and broken. Just beyond them, Shilu Slafor knelt, her eyes red, blazing with hate. Beyond her lay a small, crumpled body. She recognized the white robes and the wrinkled hands that once used to join in a small clap. Harold¡¯s face was covered with a small white cloth, Shilu must have done what she could to honour her beloved charge. The two male Kryptea stood watching them, ensuring they couldn''t do anything. Her eyes searched for 6, the one she had interacted with the most. But he refused to meet her gaze, his head turned deliberately away. There was someone else she saw, someone she hadn¡¯t expected. Someone she thought had escaped with the rest. Efreet stood in the corner of the room, flanked by two guards in full exo-suits, while he wore plain clothes. He looked confused. So it wasn¡¯t him, she realised. The swapping ability she had seen on the platforms, that wasn''t his. That explained how he¡¯d been acting the past few days. Stoic. Calm. Angie had thought it was focus, the kind she¡¯d seen in soldiers, a putting to the side of personality, a shifting to duty, becoming almost an autonomous being with only the objective ahead. If it wasn¡¯t Efreet, then who in the hell was with Meno and Paba? ¡°Where are they?¡± Moran grumbled. Angie looked up at him, searching his face for any sign. She kept her own expression neutral, not wanting to give anything away herself. Chances were that Moran was being played too, that he would only have a basic understanding of what was happening, all that a grunt would need. He would merely be a pawn, a soldier sent to capture the Traes. It would have been a risk to have him know too much about what the Dorlec were planning. ¡°Sorry¡­took a knock to the head. Who are you referring to, Commander?¡± she asked, her voice laced with mock confusion, feigning the effects of her injuries. The Kryptea behind her responded with a swift swat to her temple, sending a jolt of pain through her skull. She steadied herself, ¡°That should fix it¡±, she said spitting on the floor. ¡°We know your team took her. We know you infiltrated the guard,¡± he said, indicating toward Efreet. Infiltrated? Angie¡¯s mind reeled. Whoever had been Efreet wasn¡¯t with them, they were from another party. Worrec¡¯s, perhaps? That could be good. Maybe. Her head really was spinning now. She looked over to Efreet. Who replaced him? Moran stepped closer and grabbed her chin, forcing her to meet his gaze. ¡°Where are they?¡± he demanded. Angie smiled at him, defiant even through his grip. Moran let go of her face but gripped the straps of her exo-suit, dragging her across the floor of Traes'' patio toward the balcony. Her feet dragging along the ground, every few steps, sliding across the blood that dripped from her face as he hauled her forward. Her ribs ached with every little movement. ¡°You see that, Captain?¡± he spat, ¡°That is the Dorlec, you know about them correct? Who would you prefer to find them?¡± Angie looked up, her gaze drawn to the Pillar looming over the city. Its matte black surface glowed faintly with the fires of the city below, the slightly blue light of its gravity engines, suspended it above the ground shimmering, warping the light around its edges. The massive ship hung in stillness above the mountain-sized statue of Det¡¯em, its presence casting an oppressive weight over the scene. A shiver ran down her spine. Once, the sight of a Pillar brought her comfort, a symbol of reinforcements, troops, and military superiority. She supposed it still represented that, just not for her, not anymore. She could hear the city better now, the cries of people, the shots from rifles. It was still going on. Even with the Pillar, people were still fighting, perhaps not realising they had already lost. The Dorlec would most probably let them whittle themselves down before going in to contain them. ¡°Trust me, Captain, you will save them significant pain by handing them over to me¡± ¡°Am I meant to pretend that the Traes being tied up there and you being in charge means that you aren¡¯t just going to hand them straight over to the Dorlec, Commander?¡± she said, her voice sharp. Moran grunted at this, but before he could retort, the Pillar let out another deep bellow that hit like waves, vibrating the air itself, shaking the bones as it struck the atmosphere. The sound that once inspired so much passion in her, stirred her muscles into action and vibrated her blood with purpose. Now, it only left her veins cold. The frozen realisation that this Pillar was not here to defend her, or back her up. Now she was the victim of a military order, a speck in the deep cry of the merciless monolith. It drowned out the chaos from below for a moment, and stilled the world, all attention being pulled to it. The shell-like surface of the Pillar cracked with a beam of light, splitting at its centre, light emitting from its core, releasing a slow procession of military personnel carriers, flanked by twelve sleek fighters. Angie recognised their resemblance to the Dagger-class ships from the war, though these were far more advanced. They flew like blades through the air, black like the Pillar itself, but with a sleek shimmering finish which Angie knew would be coming from not just their gravity engines, but the generated shields too. There were no visible windows, yet Angie knew the pilots inside would have near-complete 360-degree vision and those things would be packed with an array of weapons. These fighters weren¡¯t just lethal; they were designed with brutal efficiency in mind. A squad of those things could take down a city with ease. Their design, while sleek, was not merely for aesthetics, which she knew the Dorlec would appreciate, but because they were made of hardened materials, and in their attacks, they could drive their pointed fronts into the hulls of larger ships. Fighters like that were meant to cut fleets apart and destroy any options that may have been available for a counterattack. They were brutal efficiency, wrapped up in hardened shells of premium materials, with active shielding that could be adapted into a weapon when needed. These were not the craft you released when expecting survivors. Between the twelve dagger class fighters were three larger, more leisurely designed military crafts, Triumvirate class vessels. Ships with the sole purpose of transporting the high-ranking officials that would usually command from the Pillar. Their wings, completely unnecessary and merely a symbol of supreme command, spanned twenty meters each, moving as if slicing through the air with grace. Ornate and luxurious inside, these ships were designed to parade victory, not enter the battlefield. These carriers weren¡¯t just transports, they had weapons too. Angie had never seen one deployed in battle. They existed for commanders, for the leaders who sat safely aboard the Pillars, to be brought down to a devastated battlefield so that they could declare their victory over some city, town, or planet on which their own soldiers would have lost lives, minds, and perspectives. During the war, they were saluted by soldiers with whatever limbs they had left, with what ideals of duty remained, by those who could still stand in the glory of the great commander''s good games. This carrier would carry the Pillar Commander. Angie had no doubt about that. ¡°Looks like you are out of time anyway,¡± said Moran, moving away from her, leaving her on the balcony with guards standing behind her. She watched the parade move slowly from the Pillar, drifting ceremonially over the city toward the open hands of Det¡¯em. Perhaps this was it, she thought, she couldn''t see a way out of this one. Not this time. The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings. She dropped her head out of habit, as she had in countless situations like this before, but the expected emptiness or dread didn¡¯t swell inside her. There was no fear, not the usual spiral into her mind, the inevitable review of past decisions that she had made before in shame. This time was different. The emptiness wasn¡¯t there. Instead, she felt a surprising calmness, a quiet sense of pride. She had done this for someone else. That was the decision she now relived and reviewed, the act of getting them out. She smiled, she didn''t regret it. This was right. She felt at peace watching her death march toward her in the Dorlec ships, the hums of the ships becoming somewhat cathartic. She nearly chuckled, thinking back to long ago during the war when discussions would turn to who would die in the most heroic or spectacular way. It had been a morbid game they played, wagering on who would fall to the highest-ranking soldier or the most over-the-top weaponry. When everything seemed against you and death inevitable, that absurd competition brought a strange kind of comfort. ¡®They will need a fleet for me¡¯, had been Gab¡¯s promise. ¡®I¡¯ll look them dead in the eye and laugh, while I stick them one more time¡¯, had been Leif¡¯s desire. ¡®Bring Bel himself!¡¯ was Lor¡¯s challenge. Angie had never thought about what her death would be like, she just knew that it would come. She knew that it wouldn''t be in her control. It had never come though. Gab had fallen to stray shots on a battlefield. A small cut, left untreated on some gods-forsaken swamp planet, had taken Leif. Lor had died fighting, she knew that even if she hadn¡¯t seen it, but it hadn¡¯t been Bel who got him. Their deaths were inglorious, as death always was. Not many had a death that counted, one that meant something. Not people like them, like Angie. Some of them were pulled into a Primer''s ability and killed as collateral damage. No choice in that. But here she sat, in the Temple of Det¡¯em. An army in front of her, a House Pillar overhead, and a Dorlec Commander descending to face her and all after she¡¯d sacrificed herself to save her team. ¡°Not too shabby,¡± she said softly to herself, a teardrop daring to release from its duct. She chuckled to herself as she watched the Triumvirate class vessels glide steadily to the level of the apartment balcony. It seemed to extend further and further ahead of her, the curves of the ship looking as though they cut through the air. She watched in peace as it glided over the balcony, coming to a slow prolonged stop at the balcony''s level. The front of the ship opened, the ramp extending over the balustrade touching the ground. The Daggers orbited the Triumvirate, ready to plunge their weapons into the temple if needed. From the gangway stepped a Dorlec commander, with his full exo-suit on, all the medals on display hidden behind the white cloak, laced with gold and navy blue with its matching gold epaulettes extending the shoulders out. He was trailed by ten Dorlec guards in their own suits. ¡°Former Captain Lawrence,¡± said the Commander''s distorted voice through the mask before dropping his helmet¡¯s visor, to which Angie actually laughed, she felt the drying blood on her face crack, ¡°Of course it¡¯s you,¡± she said chuckling, ¡°You prick,¡± ¡°Something amusing, former Captain Angela Lawrence?¡± he asked, looking down his straight nose and finely combed hair. Angie looked up at him and smiled, genuinely feeling like there was meaning in this. In it being him, some cosmic game that was being played. ¡°I just remembered that I won a game I started playing a long time ago,¡± she said, bursting into laughter again, before she caught sight of Sheppard nodding to someone. Then, suddenly without warning, the world went black. ¡°I¡¯m sorry sir, she did say that she may have taken a knock to the head¡± said Moran, standing over the now unconscious Angie. ¡°Or just Hulfean. They are all insane,¡± said Smik, his visor dropping as he stood next to Moran. ¡°Interrogate her, find out where the boy is¡±, said Sheppard, stepping over her towards the heart of the patio. Sheppard could see that Moran looked confused. Of course, Moran wouldn''t have understood the Dorlec¡¯s interest in the boy. His soldiers already surrounded the room, and he took pride in the Traes guard becoming submissive at their arrival. The blue exo-suited guards looked around at one another, at their commander, then to him. His eyes moved over to the Traes, Eher and Pac, who were holding each other in the corner of the room, their eyes boring into him. A hatred that he thought should be reflected, something that they should contemplate. They had allowed all of this to happen. All the Dorlec did was move a few pieces, the fact that they did not recognise the game was their fault, their mistake. The Kryptea stood dutifully over them, like the good dogs they were. Then there was the young Traes soldier that had burst into the room after Grasci¡¯s death. He was the personal guard to Olivia Traes. Sheppard had been thinking about this since it had been reported. It meant that he was right, there were other powers at play here, potentially the Eshara or the Artelis, but Lord Louis Matise had received explicit orders from the Autarch, orders that could not be defied. Whatever web this Meno was in, it was cast far wider than he had initially suspected. Infiltration of a Planetary Head¡¯s guard, let alone being invited in as a guest in the first place. Whoever his friends were, they were clearly connected, regardless of him being nothing of note. A simple test subject. Added to that, he still had the Lotus, holding the Eshara in the system. Victoria Sequeria¡¯s actions were still strange to him. She was a formidable woman, with an army backing her, and Sheppard did not allow himself to forget that the Lotus was once a Home Ship designed for war. He remembered as a child hearing reports of the devastation that the Imhullu warship tearing through Hulfean space. Stories of the Eshara rampaging across systems in the name of the Masma, and the old god emperor Bel. If it came down to a fight, they had only had three Pillars on the planet. A battle with the Eshara and the Lotus would be futile to say the very least. It would also be suicide for her, the Dorlec would wipe the Eshara from the galaxy as a consequence of standing against them. It was strange for her to still be in the system, stranger still that he had reports that she was still on the ship herself. Though, he needed to remain sceptical of that intel. The Eshara were not known for leaking information, and even with the countless guests that the ship was now attending to, none of them would have access to her, or her people. She wouldn''t be seen if she didn''t want to. The only thing that made sense to Sheppard when considering the Lotus and the Queen of Midnight, was that she was somehow connected to the boy, to Meno. Why else would she risk the suspicion? They had to be connected in some way, did she send him here? But for what purpose, was it merely for protection? He knew that the attack on Yeley had been kept ¡®need to know¡¯ so perhaps even her networks never got word of it, but it felt off. Sheppard still felt as though he was missing something. A feeling that he despised. Before all of that, however, he needed to wrap up Yeley. He pulled one of the chairs out from the large table that had glass, food and ornaments thrown across it. He dusted off the chair, and took a seat, ensuring everyone in the room was aware of every movement. He sat for a moment, looking at the Traes, savouring their uneasiness and their questioning looks. Smik came to stand behind him. Neither Traes dared to say anything. What could they say, they had already lost. He beckoned them forward with two fingers, and to his pleasure it was the two of the Traes Guard that were standing near them that herded them over. Their looks of incredulity at their own people handing them over was something to behold. They stood before him, but he didn''t say anything, he lazily looked up at them, watching the terror and anger on their faces. Still, they had no words, there was nothing left for them. His victory was absolute. However, it needed to become legal. He threw out a data pad across the table, they looked at it without touching it, ¡°What is this?¡± muttered Pac. His usual commanding voice, faltering ¡°This document says you will formally hand over control of all political and sovereign powers of Yeley over to the Dorlec Empire. You could make things much easier for yourselves now¡± he said calmly, ¡°Sign it. We would appreciate if this were a peaceful transition of power¡± ¡°Peaceful?¡± sobbed Eher, jerking forward and placing her hands on the table, ¡°You call this peaceful?!¡± she bellowed pointing to the city beyond the balcony, finding her voice. Sheppard did not react. Pac looked at him with utter hate, a rage that would only sit and fester within him. A deserved self-hatred for his inability to change what was happening, or what had happened. Again Sheppard did not react. ¡°With the signing of this document, your people will be placed under the protection of the Dorlec Empire, and therefore the Autarch himself. Without it, your planet will smoulder into ash from the revolution that you have allowed to burn,¡± he said, his eyes passing between the two, ¡°You also have your daughter to consider, from what I understand, she is still on Yeley. No ships have entered orbit, and no shifter activity has been picked up. We wouldn''t want her to be left out there all alone, would we?¡± he saw the panic and visceral realisation strike them. Even if they had thought her safe, they would have no way to know, no way to confirm. If Sheppard said that she was vulnerable, those words would eat away at them. They would corrupt and consume any previous thought of her safety. ¡°What are the terms?¡± said Pac, his memory of being a planetary head clearly still present. Was the fool going to try and negotiate? Sheppard allowed his right hand to drift upwards, he felt the tech in his chest warm beneath his skin. He held two fingers out, pointing at Ehers'' midriff, and pulled his hand quickly to the side. It was immediate, she didn''t even react to it at first, it took time for her to realise the giant gaping wound had been inflicted on her abdomen. Blood sprayed from her side. She screamed and Pac stumbled trying to hold her up as she began to fall. He grabbed her, softly guiding her to the floor, blood leaching out of her onto the stone. She had immediately gone pale with shock. Pac Traes whimpered over her, unsure of what to do, his hands floundering over the wound, gathering her blood. ¡°We will help her once the document is signed, former Planetary Head, Pac Traes¡± Chapter 24: A Rescue Meno felt the familiar lurch in his stomach, his vision pulling and blurring, and then heat prickled on his skin. His eyes flickered, struggling to adjust to the new light before him. Instinctively, he braced himself with his arms, even though consciously he knew that he had not been spinning. He was not used to shifting yet and didn''t think that he would become used to the strange sensation. ¡°Everyone good with the plan?¡± Liv asked, now steely with determination. She had become resolute and focused while developing the plan in the farmhouse, even taking moments where she and Paba moved off aside, she spoke clearly and passionately as they worked out the details. She clearly was not suffering the same effects as Meno after being shifted by Worrec who glanced up at the Pillar with a look of almost casual interest. ¡°All good,¡± replied Ko, calmly checking his exo-suit again and placing the helmet back on. Somehow he had fallen into the role of teammate during the planning phase. Meno knew that he could trust Paba and Liv, but he felt conflicted about trusting someone who actively deceived them. Meno needed to continuously remind himself that much of their escape was owed to Ko¡¯s presence, even if he was not who they thought he was. ¡°Yeah,¡± said Meno softly, his eyes moving from Ko, up to the temple. The statue of Det¡¯em illuminated by the Pillar and the embers below. They had been at the farmhouse for about an hour and a half, and it seemed that the time had done nothing to quell the violence and panic that had fallen over the city. They were in a small side street that Meno didn''t recognise, and even it had felt the effects of the riots. He could see the walls that had been painted earlier that day with what looked like a vibrant yellow, had a deep green painted over it. The colours of Reform. The street was filled with debris, rocks, broken glass, and spilt paint. It was difficult to know which event had caused what. The usually neat and clean city was now disturbed, broken. ¡°I¡¯m trusting you,¡± said Paba¡¯s voice, and Meno turned to see her handing over the pendent containing HAL to Ko, the helmeted spy nodded his head and Meno saw Worrec give Paba an encouraging nod. ¡°Okay,¡± she sighed before taking in a deep breath, ¡°Meno, you¡¯ve got tech in your head, so use it. I¡¯m on the comms, let me know when you are close¡± he nodded to her, noting her newfound role. Long gone was the Paba that would crack a lame joke or pull her tongue, or even shrink under questioning from Liv. She was serious now, terrified, but serious. ¡°Worrec,¡± she said looking at the tall blonde man, who upon his name being called held his hand up with the small homemade grenades, showing a red label. Bang-bang¡¯s. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, Lady Liv and I will get the party started for you,¡± he said with a wink to Liv, who still studied him strangely. It was odd, thought Meno, it wasn''t like she was uncomfortable around him, it was like she was trying to place him, as though she recognised him from a distant memory. He wondered what those eyes of hers were seeing and found himself wondering what Worrec¡¯s threads would reveal about him. He caught himself, he didn''t have time or need to understand that now though. He pulled on the plain clothes jacket that he was wearing now, having dropped the braces and plates of the exo-suit at the farmhouse. He still wore the base suit itself but it now lacked much of the utility and protection that it had previously. It was a necessary sacrifice. They had decided that it would be easier for him to get into the temple like this rather than as a Traes guard. He didn''t have the helmet anyway. Ko would be changing suits where appropriate, and his tech would give him the chance to switch places with a target but keep their clothing, or in this case, exo-suit in place. Basically, if he saw a Dorlec guard, he could remove the soldier from the exo-suit and replace them, without anyone knowing, and without the exo-suit moving at all. It was a ridiculous ability and one that he had mentioned worked well when fully suited guards and soldiers were about. The only limits that he had on it were range and a similar mass requirement. ¡®I can¡¯t switch with a group, or a ship or anything, so keep that in mind¡¯ he had said. ¡°Meno,¡± he had said through the distorted mask, and Meno saw him hold his index and middle finger out and face them downwards, ¡°Remember this, if you see this, it¡¯s me¡± he had run through this with Meno at the farmhouse, but Meno nodded once more showing that he understood. ¡®I¡¯m going to be playing around the edges, I¡¯ll be on the comms, but this will let you know if it¡¯s me or not¡¯ he had said earlier that evening. Meno didn''t appreciate that he had said, ¡®playing around the edges¡¯ like that. He didn''t feel that this was a game. ¡°Once your, bang-bang¡¯s¡­¡± Ko still didn''t seem to think the name was appropriate, ¡°Go off, I¡¯ll wait for the call, and then blow the bomb in the temple¡±, Meno nodded, knowing that it would be his call that would be required for the final blast to go off. ¡°Good luck,¡± said Worrec as he gripped onto the unsuspecting Liv and then with in a sudden warping of the air around them, vanished from their spot. He looked at Paba and swallowed, ¡°See you in there,¡± said Ko, who sprinted off. Meno watched him run off through the alleyway. He shuddered slightly but quickly tried to regather himself. He had been in intense situations before, but this was different, this was a planned assault, with key elements resting on his shoulders. It was also far more dangerous. He took a breath and turned to Paba who was looking at him with concern ¡°Be careful¡± Paba said and Meno could see the fear in her too, ¡°You too, don¡¯t get caught up there, we can get through another way if needed¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be fine¡± she said, ¡°Don¡¯t die¡± she said, seeming only to be able to manage those words. He could see she wanted to say more, but couldn''t. She launched herself at him and hugged him, holding him for a moment around his torso. He patted her on the back and she released him quickly, turning to make sure she wasn''t facing him. ¡°Bring her back¡± were her last choked words to him. It didn''t take Meno long to get close to the Agora, with only two occasions that he needed to sneak past guards, and on both occasions, those guards were Traes. He had found a marching crowd, all still chanting and holding the flag of Reform, they were moving loudly towards the Agora. Men, women and even some children, all in concert barging their way through the streets, breaking windows and stalls as they went. Meno slipped in, giving a few chants himself, as he was pushed and shoved into the crowd as they bustled through. On a few occasions apologising to those around him, and once nearly stepped on a little girl who couldn''t have been more than five, holding onto her mother''s hand who chastised him. Even with the looming threat of the Houses, they followed in defiance of being controlled, they howled and shouted at any guards that they passed. ¡®Liberation for Yeley!¡¯ ¡®For Grasci!¡¯ ¡®For The Front! For a new Yeley!¡¯ they bellowed into the air as they made their way forward. ¡®We are Yeley, we are free!¡¯ Meno saw from within the crowd, his arm up in a thrusting motion with the protestors, that Traes guards lined the sides of the streets, allowing them through to the Agora. The guard just watched them. Meno imagined that they wouldn''t want to create any cause for retaliation. Too afraid to be the first to shoot. They were outnumbered, heavily. It would have been a death sentence. His eyes once again flittered toward the statue of Det¡¯em, and he tried to see if anything from the Traes balcony was visible, but it was too high up, too dark and the glow coming from beneath did not do enough to show anything clearly. He knew that she was in there though. He peered over his shoulder to the Pillar, standing still and dark ahead of the statue. He could feel the vibrations of its gravity engines as they worked to keep it suspended. They had heard its call clearly from the farmhouse not long ago. The deep horn carried easily over the fields and hit the farmhouse, shaking its very walls. He had seen all manner of winged creatures scatter as they flooded the air in all directions, as far as the eye could see. ¡°They say that the Dorlec Commander is arresting Pac Traes¡± spat a man next to Meno in the crowd as they shuffled through. ¡°About time¡± Meno spat back, hoping that it was convincing enough, tightening the jacket around him to conceal what now only looked like a tight black body suit, but there was always a chance that it could be identified as an exo-suit base layer. The man roared, the sound of it being drowned out by the crowd, and he felt slightly more at ease as they made their way through the narrow alleyways and streets to the Agora. The line moved slower as they got closer, the crowd all packing together, clearly all wanting to get the best seats in the house. It wasn''t long before Meno needed to make his way out of the march and through one of the less busy streets, stealthily making his way closer and closer. He made his way into a building that had been abandoned and saw that the home had been ransacked, separating from the crowd. Art lay broken on the ground, the sofa overthrown and glass strewn across the floor. He made his way up the stairs to the higher level and took a moment in the quieter room to prepare himself, checking once more on the gravity grenades that he had. Paba¡¯s ¡®innies and outies¡¯ and three bang-bangs too. He wished he had more of those, but Worrec and Liv needed them. He looked out the window of the once home and peered into the Agora. Thousands of people had swarmed the Agora, most chanting, some playing large drums that must have been wheeled in earlier, some pushing each other and getting into fights. The place was pure chaos. He opened the window and stood on the sill looking down into the crowd. He called down to get some of the crowd to move and jumped down to the ground below, landing heavily and ensuring that none of the grenades were dislodged from his jacket. He saw that he had gathered a bit of a crowd and unwanted attention and so thrust his arm into the air and shouted, ¡°Yeley is free!¡± the crowd joined him, and in their jubilation, he slipped through them, getting closer and closer to the temple gates. Just as he was getting close, the Pillar unleashed another deafening blow. He and the crowd around him dropped to their haunches, as he did and covered their ears. It shook his very bones, he felt it in his eyes, like they were vibrating out of his head. The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Then it immediately went silent, and an image appeared in the Pillar itself, a symbol appeared on its surface, a glowing diamond shape made of three smaller diamond shapes within it, and three lines that came off the bottom two angles with a dot at the bottom. The Sigil of the Dorlec, he now knew. Some of the crowd tried to move around him quickly, potentially trying to escape, some jeered at the symbol. A voice then came from the Pillar, ¡°This is Commander Sheppard of the Dorlec Empire. We have arrested Pac and Eher Traes for the assassination of Professor Isaac Grasci. Remain calm while we resolve this issue, will soon have further instruction¡± Then suddenly the light vanished. The mob did anything but remain calm, and roared once more. There had been initial cheers from the crowd after the announcement of the arrest, but Meno knew that this mob did not stand with the Traes, but they also opposed any control. They didn''t want the Dorlec here either. He found something else interesting though, the Commander had identified himself as Sheppard. That was the name of the Commander on Gol. he looked up to the balcony once more before pushing and shoving his way through the crowd, no longer worrying about their reactions, no longer apologising. Sheppard would know Angie, they had met. He didn''t know what that would mean, but he needed to act faster than he had been. He would wonder if this was a coincidence or not later, right now, he needed to focus on getting to her. He got to the gate, leaving one row of pushing people in front of him so that the guards wouldn''t be able to spot him, the smell of burning here was stronger, and the crowd were angrier. He had been warned by Ko and Worrec that the Traes and Dorlec helmets would scan his face, and Ko had confirmed that he would be identified having seen Meno¡¯s face pass over on the ¡®list of suspicious persons¡¯. All of their faces had come up on his display when they were leaving the temple as the culprits that were kidnapping Liv, bar Ko¡¯s. He raised his hand to the back of his ear and pushed down just slightly, ¡°I¡¯m here¡± ¡°Then here we go¡± came Worrec¡¯s voice, and then there were three large booms from behind him. He turned to face the screaming crowd behind him and saw the blooms of three blasts from buildings surrounding the Agora, ¡°Into the temple¡± he screamed, trying to get the crowd to push forward, ¡°Move, to the temple, get into the temple, they are attacking!¡± just as Ko had told him, ¡®It won¡¯t take much to get a mob like that into a frenzy¡¯ he had said. Meno turned back and watched the guards ahead of him, feeling people push past him as he calmly surveyed a path for himself. They were turning back into the temple, running away from the onslaught of thousands of people pushing their way past their defences. They would not dare to take on so many, even with their weapons and suits. He rushed in with the crowd, feeling that he had enough people in front of him now that he wouldn''t be picked up as someone leading the charge. The guards were either not there or already in a heap as he made his way through the temple gates, as the fires from the blasts raged. The temple would be flooded in no time. There was another enormous blast from the Pillar, but this time, its horn-like bellow was the sound that was drowned out by the crowd. Even in the temple, he saw marks of the uprising, scorch marks on the fine stone walls and bodies lying on the ground from the push. Blood stained some of the walls and military equipment was left lying as Meno realised the guard had not expected to be breached. He bumped and pushed past people as he made his way up the staircase into the temple and started moving left, feeling like he was moving against water in the crowd, but he needed to get to one of the stone staircases. He saw two quick bolts of light pass over him, and he ducked, then looked up to see a Dorlec soldier with their rifle out. The soldier stuck out his index and middle finger and faced his hand down. It was Ko. Meno rushed passed him up the staircase, which already had a crowd moving up it wanting to get away from the chaos. Meno heard a muffled voice come from the soldier, in a panic, ¡°What?! No, I¡¯m not a¡­¡± The exo-suited soldier was consumed by the crowd, and Meno knew that Ko had already moved on. ¡°Holy shit that¡¯s rough,¡± Meno said, panting up the stairs, not stopping. It was a ridiculous ability, but it always required a replacement to take the fall. He made it to the first floor, and ran through the corridors, outpacing the people around him, but it would be fine, he would wait on the third floor for the crowd to catch up, it would be better if he could get rid of any guards that may have been posted there. He knew that they had barricaded the fourth when Grasci was assassinated, and the temple was flooded the first time. He wished he knew what the guard''s presence looked like, but that would have to wait for Hal. It didn''t seem like there was any presence of guards on this floor or perhaps he was just lucky with the corridor that he had taken. At the top of the stairs of the second floor, he ducked back behind as three blue bolts shot passed him. He stood with his back to the wall, trying to regulate his breath, which was quick and unsteadier than it should have been for this much running. He dug in the jacket and pulled an outie. He gave it a small squeeze to activate it and then threw it down the corridor. He didn''t know where they were, but that was what the outie was for. He listened for the grenade to go off, and heard the sudden crack, like a whip and then the heavy thump that followed it, he felt the shockwave burst through the corridor, and then dashed through the corridor, seeing the corridor now filled with dust. He ran through and saw guards trying to get up from the blast of air pressure that the outie gravity grenade created. Without breaking stride, Meno lifted his knee into the helmet of the guard. The blue helmet of the Traes guard cracked with the impact, and he turned up the staircase to make his way to the third floor. He stopped at the top of the stairs, not wanting to make the same mistake as before. He listened carefully, his breath still rapid, and his heart felt like it was thumping out of his chest, but his vision felt incredibly sharp, and he was aware of everything around him. He heard the encrypted speech of the guards, a strange sound that jerked about like sounds that were out of order, the phonetics of their speech jumping and skipping. It was like hearing a sentence where all of the syllables and sounds were out of place. He was still about one hundred and fifty meters away from where he needed to be. He steadied his breath, he knew that he needed to get as close to the central lift in his next movement. He took out a bang-bang and an innie, took another deep breath and turned into the corridor. He was immediately met with an incoming wall of flame, and he realised that he was now facing a Dorlec soldier. They had different tech, as well as Primers in their ranks. He threw the innie at the wall of flame that burst toward him, roaring as it did so, his breath held in his throat as he pressed on, darting right toward the wall of flame, that licked at him. Right before the heat became too much for Meno to handle, his arms held out in front of his face, he heard the strange, droplet-like noise and he watched the fire being pulled away from him, like it was being sucked into a vacuum. He felt the pull against himself and nearly tripped with his legs almost unable to keep up, but steadied himself, using his arms to balance himself. He saw the black exo-suit and immediately threw the ban-bang down the corridor, before jumping into one of the rooms that was thankfully empty, he had just made it inside when he heard the grenade burst with another thunderous clang. He pulled himself off the floor, his heart still racing and ran through the corridor, now filled with smoke and dust. He heard the soldiers coughing and the strange encrypted speech, but it was weak. He saw the primer Dorlec soldier, he was the one that was coughing in his suit, and Meno saw that he had a blast impression of his chest. He brought down a heavy blow on the soldier''s helmet and cracked it too. It was harder than the Traes¡¯ guards that he had felt before. So they even had better exo-suits than the Traes. He quickly moved to the other two soldiers and saw that they had passed out. They must have been trying to speak before succumbing. ¡°Why is nobody ever looking when I do shit like this,¡± he said breathlessly, looking up the now smoke-filled corridor. He looked back down the corridor and heard the screams and cries of the mob making its way up the staircases, and then suddenly he felt a push on his side, and as if moving in slow motion, the red leg of a Kryptea that had side kicked him from behind. His body crumpled under the impact, and he was thrown into the wall hitting it with a massive thump. His breath escaped him as the Kryptea lunged¡ªsword aimed for his neck. Meno ducked. The blade screeched against stone. From the side of his eye, he saw another, the female swinging her sword toward his neck once more. They weren¡¯t fucking around here. He ducked, grabbed onto the first Kryptea and spun under his arm and around him, Meno then thrust his fist into the Kryptea¡¯s back, keeping his eye on the female who pulled her sword out of the stone wall. This male seemed slower than 6. The Kryptea he was holding, which he now realised was Laken, tried to turn an elbow into Meno¡¯s head, but Meno ducked, grabbed an innie from in his jacket, held it in his hand and threw an uppercut into the Kryptea¡¯s jaw. The blow lifted Laken off the ground and Meno released the innie from his hand, allowing it to hang near the Kryptea¡¯s head, and he jumped down low to the side, sliding along the ground before he heard the droplet sound. He felt a massive tug at him before he could reach the ground and was pulled back up from the floor by the gravity grenade to a near-standing position once more. He orientated himself in the air, still feeling the pull. Laken¡¯s body was still standing, but his throat and jaw were gone, and his eyes were still now vacant, the life pulled from them by the grenade. His heart skipped with the realisation of what the grenade had done to the Kryptea, a moment where thoughts flashed through his mind of guilt and panic. He had done that to him. He watched the body as the legs that were no longer receiving any signals from his brain, dropped and the Kryptea thudded to his knees. Meno watched him, feeling his heart sink and the walls get in closer. His heart pounded as Laken¡¯s body crumpled. His mind screamed at him to move, but something inside him twisted¡ªhe had done that. He thought of August, a man that he had thrown against the wall. All of this ran through his head in the moment that Laken had dropped to the floor. Meno caught himself though, with a flash from his side and realised he couldn''t afford to stop, as Archon was pulled into the blast too and was wheeling at him using the momentum of the grenade to rush forward with her blade ready. Meno¡¯s heart jumped for a moment and he felt the slight pushback from the space around where the innie had gone off, the air pushing back into the space where the vacuum had just been. It wasn''t stopping her though and he knew he wasn''t going to make it, his feet had only just hit the ground, he wasn''t going to be able to dodge the blow and he had nothing that he could block the sword with. He was fucked. He felt someone grip tightly on the back of his neck and saw Archon slow for a moment, her eyes on whoever was pulling Meno. He suddenly felt himself go horizontal as he was thrown onto the opposing wall. He smashed into it sideways and slid down the stone, landing with a thump on the ground. His vision was blurry and he blinked on the ground, trying to pull himself together. He felt like he had just been dropped off a building. He looked up and as his eyes adjusted, saw that it was 6. The Kryptea that he had been training with was standing in the corridor, taller than Archon who was looking at him incredulously, the most emotion that Meno had ever seen from her. Meno noted that he was at the lift now and that he had hit the wall next to it. ¡°Mine,¡± said 6 in his usual deep, low tone, but this time, it somehow held some animosity in it. Archon watched him carefully. Meno kept blinking trying to bring focus back to his eyes as he watched the two in front of him. He knew he wouldn''t have much time before one of them descended on him, and with him not standing much of a chance when fully fit, he needed to try and gather himself as fast as possible now. The taller Kryptea turned to Meno who lifted his hand up to his ear and pushed down slightly. ¡°Now, please¡± The use of words nearly drained all of the air he had left in him. ¡°You got it, kid¡± came Ko¡¯s voice. It was instantaneous, Meno felt the blast go off below them, he felt the stone ground beneath them swell as shockwaves were sent through the temple of Det¡¯em, an enormous crack of thunder as Ko¡¯s bomb, planted days ago when he had first entered the temple on the second floor, blew beneath them. Meno watched as fire jetted out of the temple from the lower floor, through the open corridor balconies. His eyes felt the pressure build-up from the blast, and he felt himself rise into the air from the warping of the stone beneath him, again a heat from the explosion hit him. He saw the Kryptea¡¯s footing falter as the corridors buckled under the blast. The entire temple rocked with a burst of flame and sound. There was no going back now. Chapter 25: Infiltration Ko saw him in the crowd, looking for a way up the floors, as he got shoved and pushed by people trying to escape the blasts from the outside, into the safety of the temple. If only these poor fools knew, thought Ko. The chaos of the crowd at the entrance to the temple must have disorientated him, as he looked lost, despite having lived in this temple for months now. Ko was standing in a Traes guard exo-suit, looking down into the entrance. He wasn''t being attacked which told him that people were still too afraid of consequences. He would need to change that for all of this to work. Ko shot two bolts into the crowd, just above Meno¡¯s head trying to gain his attention. He saw the crowd baulk at this action, first pulling away and then roaring in incredulity and they seized with fury. It had two desired effects as Meno looked over at him, and he was now also subject to the fury of the crowd. The rest of the guards would now feel that same scrutiny. He held his hand out with forefinger and middle facing down and saw Meno recognise him. Good, the kid wasn''t panicking yet, and quickly made his way past Ko, who was standing in the Traes guard exo-suit that was about to become the target of the new ¡®consequence¡¯. He spotted a man to his left who was about to run straight over an elderly man trying to escape the chaos. Ko flicked his right hand in the familiar movement and changed places with him, his vision needing the familiar adjustment period of an entirely new scene in front of him. Usually, Ko could get away from the side effects of vision blurring by simply closing his eyes, but this situation needed full awareness. He had left the exo-suit for the man to stay in. He reached out his hands and caught the elderly man, guiding him to the side, but made sure to watch the exo-suit that he had just left as it, and the man inside was consumed by the mob, screaming something. They would no longer be afraid of the guards now, he thought. ¡°Thank you, young man,¡± said the old-timer in Ko¡¯s arms. ¡°No problem pops. Maybe stick to the corners, eh?¡± the old man nodded, and Ko took the room in, watching the flow of people. It was like a storm in the middle of some rough sea, people flowing this way and that, crashing into one another as the light from the flames outside flickered against the stone walls of the temple. He needed to find a command panel as fast as he could. He knew from the schematics that he had memorised that there was one below, toward the basement levels, in a security command room. The tunnel down to it was crowded, but he would just need to make some quick swaps and he would be through. He looked around for any weapons but couldn''t see anything. There was no helping it then. He made his way quickly across the room toward the tunnel, bustling through the crowd and pulled out one of Paba¡¯s bang-bangs that he had hidden in his base layers. Very clever little devices he kept thinking every time he grabbed one. Just a small generator and some loose tech. Ingenious. ¡°Here, throw this,¡± Ko said to a young man who seemed to be the most enraged person around him. Always the easiest targets, ¡°Down that passage, that''s where all the guards will come from¡± he added, and stepped forward, not needing to check if the boy would do it or not, he knew that he would. Within a matter of seconds, Ko saw the bang-bang lobbed over the crowd toward the tunnel. He had no thoughts for his compatriots as the small bomb made its way through the passage entrance. The cost of revolution, he thought, grimly. Ko stood to the side, ensuring that he would not be bowled over as soon as the bomb went off, and the tide of the crowd flowed toward him. The blast shot a jet of fire toward the mob, and Ko felt the heat of it, and once again the entranceway screamed, but this time in fear, people ran away from the hallway, and Ko pushed himself against the wall as they rushed past him. He kept his eyes on the entrance waiting for a guard or, preferably a Dorlec soldier to appear. He needed one of their suits, the Dorlec probably held full authority over the Traes guard now. Even if that wasn''t an official order, he had spent enough time with the Traes guard to know that they would submit to the more experienced Dorlec. He didn''t need to wait long, three arrived at the smokey threshold, their rifles aimed toward the crowd in threat, but unwilling to fire. The Traes guard shouted at the crowd, urging them to step back, jockeying their rifles forward at them, Ko found his target, felt the familiar energy lock, and with a flick of his wrist, Ko found himself in the exo-suit, now standing on the threshold as chaos erupted around him. He took a step back and calmly raised the rifle that was now in his hands to the back of one of the guard''s helmets, under their shield, at the base of the skull and fired, and with a whisper from the barrel the guard dropped. The other not knowing what had happened, didn''t even realise the bolt under his chin as Ko fired again. Both were down silently as he looked at the Traes guard, now out of uniform and wearing what Ko had been, and standing where he had been standing scrambling to try and get forward. He didn''t know that he had just lucked out. The crowd in front of him looked at him fearfully, and he shot two bolts into the air, which caused them all to move backwards. It would have seemed like lunacy to them, and nobody wants to risk the next move of a lunatic. ¡°Man down! We¡¯re under fire!¡± he called into the exo-suits comm, as he turned into the corridor and ran toward the security room. He heard the panic in the response as guards were readied to enter the corridor. As he suspected, the Traes Guard were trained, but they had no real experience, they didn''t know how to handle a situation like this at all. Their awareness was something that was told, it wasn''t something that they felt yet. He made his way quickly through the corridor and saw the open door of the security room, with five guards making their way out. Ko immediately gripped his side as though holding a wound, slowed himself down and put on a limp, ensuring that they would see him as someone who required immediate assistance. ¡°They¡¯re coming¡± he feigned weakly through the exo-suit helmet, and the guards took him in for a moment, ¡°How many?¡± ¡°I dont know,¡± he said trying to add some fear into his tone, on top of the pained voice. They would understand. These guards would not judge weakness, they all felt the same. ¡°Get him inside and get him medical attention¡± said the lead guard, to which one of the others lifted him, holding him on one arm as he was escorted into the security room, as the rest of the guards made their way through the corridor up to the chaos. Ko didn''t watch them, he didn''t need to, he knew that he had convinced them well enough. Once in the security room he looked around and saw panels and holograms showing the crowds above, outside and some of the top floors too, all swarming with people, all overrun. Ko realised that they were not watching what was happening in the Traes apartments, and he imagined that was by order of Moran. He needed to get eyes on the Dorlec numbers and their target, Angie. The Security Command office was staffed with three guards, not including the guard that had brought him in. The three that were tending to the holograms and panels were frantically calling into comms devices, letting the other guards know where threats were and informing command. All of them looked well out of their depths. They stuttered their commands and information, some of it not even making sense. The guard that brought him in issued orders to the other three to give him medical attention before turning and leaving again. Thankfully the remaining guards were not wearing exo-suits, which would make this easier. People in armour tend to trust it and feel like they can attack. Being exposed made a difference. Ko waited for the doors to close and for one of the others to get close to him, bringing over a medic pack, she was young, terrified and shaking as she dropped to a knee in front of him. ¡°Where are you hit?¡± she said scanning his exo-suit, visibly shaken. Ko stood up, held the rifle out and said, as gently as he possibly could, ¡°Please stand in the corner¡± she looked up at him in horror, her breath caught in her throat, ¡°Wha¡­?¡± she said falling from her haunches, her eyes wide in questioning. ¡°You two as well please,¡± he said to the other guards, two men, about the same age as the young girl. They didn''t try and fight back and both immediately raised their hands, sharing in her look of terror which was only exacerbated as they looked at each other. Ko quickly shuffled them over, handed them wrist restraints and told her to tie the other two up before he tied her wrists and ankles. ¡°Please continue to help your teams, keep your eyes on the feed and make sure that they dont know that I¡¯m here,¡± he said to their confused faces, ¡°If they find out that I am here, or you tell them, I kill all three of you, understood?¡± he received nervous nods from all three. ¡°Don¡¯t be the one that gets your two friends killed, cool?¡± He turned to the holograms and panels and quickly orientated himself, finding, through the chaos, Meno who was travelling through the corridors well enough. He was fast, thought Ko. The kid continues to surprise. ¡°I¡¯m in,¡± he said on his private comms device, ¡°Meno?¡± was Paba¡¯s immediate question. It was almost sweet. ¡°He¡¯s doing fine, making his way up¡± he said watching as the boy threw one of Paba¡¯s innie grenades at a Dorlec primer who was thrown a wall of fire toward him. Ko watched as the Hologram lit brightly with the light of the fire, only to see it being pulled into a hot tiny mass that blew up in the Dorlec¡¯s chest. This kid had a natural talent for chaos, he thought. ¡°How do I get this thing to work?¡± he said pulling her Pendant from his pocket under the exo-suit and inspecting it. It didn''t have any notable points where it could be integrated into a system, ¡°Just place it on the command console, he will¡­it will do the rest,¡± she said. He noted before how she refrained from humanising the intelligence, but only as an afterthought. Clearly, she saw it as more than code, but knew that others would be hesitant to accept it as that. Paba was a very interesting character, he thought, she had most likely befriended the intelligence, after creating it. Perhaps because of that she could fathom it, but perhaps like all creators of intelligence before, that was the ill delusion that she could handle it, understand it. He wondered. This would most likely be the most dangerous thing he had ever done. Even learning about systems like this was illegal. He pointed at a console and turned to the guards, ¡°Is this the command console?¡± he was not familiar with this technology, a few decades older than what he was used to. The girl who was still watching the holograms and panels turned to him and mid-sentence gave him a short nod. She still looked terrified and was seeming to do everything that she could to dance this fine line that Ko had placed her on. He felt bad for her, but at the same time, necessities must. Ko was just happy that they were following his instructions and weren¡¯t forcing him into doing anything he didn''t want to. He placed the pendant on the console, ¡°He¡¯s on,¡± he said and immediately was hit with a floating and rotating crescent facing upwards like the illuminated belly of a moon with lines drawn down the half-moon shape, it looked like a deranged smile. Suddenly all over, reams of symbols and numbers began moving over every hologram and panel, overlaying one another and heading in all directions. There was a strange ticking sound that came through, not in sequence but almost random that then started to speed up, becoming louder and louder as the symbols continued to multiply until Ko couldn''t see anything else. The holograms and the panels had been consumed with the symbols, and the maths, all code from ancient to modern. He saw the guards watch this with terror now too, and apparently, their comms had gone down, as they repeated themselves and sought reconnection to whoever they were speaking with. Then all at once, it stopped, and the room continued as though nothing had happened at all. The panels and holograms continued, and the guards'' comms seemed to be back. All that Ko could see was the rotating smile at the top of each hologram and panel. A shiver went up his spine, something he couldn''t remember when last he had felt. Let¡¯s hope he didn''t regret releasing this. ¡°Empress Paba! Where are we?¡± said the console in a strange, near-human voice, it seemed to go from panic to absolute calm immediately. Ko didn''t know what to do, but he saw commands being generated on the sides of the panels, countless pieces of code overlapping one another, complex maths like that Ko had never seen before being generated and then overlaid. This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°I¡¯ve got him,¡± said Paba in his ear, as he looked transfixed at the system that seemed to be completely autonomous. ¡°Ah¡­who are you?¡± said the console accusingly to Ko, whose blood now went cold. ¡°Leave him, Hal, he¡¯s with us, bring up this one,¡± said Paba¡¯s voice over the comms. She must have been interacting with HAL on her side because he saw the panels change over and suddenly he was looking at Meno once more, which caused him to jump forward facing the floating image of Meno who was now in the middle of fighting two Kryptea. Fuck, he thought as he watched Meno get thrown against the wall, but he managed to dodge, somehow. ¡°Paba, cut their comms¡± he turned and gave an apologetic look to the three guards who seemed mortified. What did they expect really? ¡°Done,¡± said the console in a chipper voice, ¡°Friend?¡± it said questionly. Ko stepped back from it, feeling deeply uncomfortable. ¡°Friend?¡± it said more desperately, ¡°Yes, he¡¯s with us, Hal¡± Ko felt himself let out a breath. He didn''t know what would have happened if she hadn''t confirmed that for him. From what he could see, they now currently had access to the entire temple. It had taken a moment for Hal to do all of that. No wonder Worrec wanted it. He needed to focus. Ko turned back to the holograms and saw that in an instant Meno had thrust his fist up toward the male Kryptea¡¯s chin and lifted him with the force of his blow before pulling back quickly, and saw that he had left one of Paba¡¯s small grenades behind, under the Kryptea¡¯s chin. The red-skinned soldier hadn''t seen it, and when it burst, Ko saw that it was an innie. It pulled at the Kryptea who was not prepared, killing him almost instantly as his jaw and throat were pulled to the centre of the gravitational mass. ¡®Who the fuck is this kid?¡¯ Ko thought to himself as he watched the dead Kryptea slowly drop. Ko knew very experienced soldiers who were not capable of something like that. Let alone even being able to compete with a Kryptea¡¯s speed. He kept watching Meno as he was thrown to the other side of the wall by the Kryptea known as 6, stopping Archon the female from being able to attack him. 6 had seemingly intervened a sure killing blow from Archon. Ko heard on the comm, ¡°Now, please¡± The kid was out of breath. He must have had it knocked out of him. ¡°You got it, kid,¡± he said into the comm. He hit the detonator and the room shook with the blast that was happening a few stories above him, the ground cracked like thunder and Ko saw the flames billow out the building on the holograms, he saw the crowds run, duck and hide from the sudden and much more powerful blast than what had come before. He heard the mob screech after the initial blast and felt the temple rumble as its stone walls tried to resettle. The sheer pressure from the blast would have caused the walls to bulge out of place. ¡°Is he okay?¡± Ko said into the comms, trying to speak over the screaming guards in the room. Paba would know how to navigate this system better than he could. ¡°I¡¯m sending gliders from the basement up to his floor, go help him!¡± said Paba through her comms as she felt nausea speaking the words, but she knew that if she didn''t focus on this now all was lost. She stood up from her sitting position in the abandoned apartment that she had chosen since being dropped off in the city by Worrec. The small room with its stone walls and closed windows had kept her out of chaos, in a bubble of anxiety, but she needed to be sharp now. She looked out the window at the temple and saw the burst of flame from the second floor, and immediately saw the Pillar gather more energy around itself, the subtle glow from the gravity engines intensifying, growing more opaque as it pulled energy towards its shields. It had engaged its defences. They would start their own attack soon if they were identified. ¡°Empress Paba, who is this strange thing?¡± ¡°He¡¯s a friend, Hal, help him. I¡¯m turning on the weather systems now, I need you to create a storm that will delay that Pillar. Choose violence,¡± god she hoped that this would work. She had never asked Hal to act in violence before and didn''t know how he was going to respond. ¡°Violence, accepted. Okey dokey!¡± Hal said enthusiastically, ¡°Storm Hella, incoming¡±. Immediately Paba heard the planet''s weather management system kick in, the slight vibration in the ground, the small hum that you needed to listen for, and she felt the winds pick up, even in the closed room. The winds would be tearing through every crack if Hal pushed the system to its limit. She rushedly put the data pad under her arm and moved from the abandoned building that she had been camping in. If the Pillar caught a whiff of her signal, it would blow a crater in the city one hundred meters deep. She looked to the temple and saw rising along the walls the fifteen gliders she had sent up the building, their metallic mirror finish glimmering in the light. She saw too the twelve Pillar fighters dropping to the lower floor. Those were dagger class, the gliders would be ripped to shreds if she didn''t do anything. ¡°Shit,¡± she said, stupidly not thinking about the Pillars fighters, ¡°Hal, activate temple defences, blow those Pillar ships away, but keep the temple gliders,¡± ¡°Inspired!¡± Hal let out jubilantly on her comms. ¡°Temple defences activated, swatting flies. Fire suppression around friend, but friend is not alone¡± Paba saw the Pillar¡¯s fighters get pushed out by the Temple¡¯s defensive shielding, which swelled outward, like a visible bubble growing around it, knocking the fighters off course. She knew that the runes that they had seen lining the walls of the temple when they first arrived would now be glowing. They were old tech, but good tech. Hopefully, it would hold. Though not for long, and in any case, they would still need to get past those things when getting Meno, Angie and Ko out. ¡°I know, you need to help him, use the gliders. Make sure that he doesn''t get hurt¡± ¡°Yes Empress¡± Hal said quickly and she watched as the fire from the blast was pulled back, being suppressed quickly by the temple systems. The temperature around her had plummeted and the winds were now roaring through the streets. She felt the bite of it, the icy winds cutting through her as her breath began to feel heavy with the cold air entering her lungs. She began to shiver but knew that she couldn''t stop. She stood outside of the building, not daring to stand in the middle of the street with the winds picking up. They howled down the alleys and Paba saw all manner of things being picked up by it as it lay the city to waste. Hopefully, people had had enough time to get inside. She would gradually increase the intensity of the storm.. She saw one of the gliders come her way, the arrow-shaped mirror finish vehicle stopped just before her and she got in. Thankfully with the gravity engines, she could cocoon the ship in a gravity bubble that would lessen the effects of the storm brewing around her. The problem was that the enemy ships would have the same advantage. Knocking them out of the sky with a storm wouldn''t really work, not if they intended to fly in that same sky. She stuck her head inside the glider to see that nobody was in the plush finish vehicle and upon seeing that it was clear. She threw the data pad onto the cushioned seats and brought up the main hologram where Hal¡¯s smile appeared, it was then wrapped with code and she saw the features of what Hal had designed for himself appear. Around the smile, the eyes and face coalesced with code to make his face, an energetic kid that he thought represented him well. ¡°This is command now, clear a path and get us into the air, we need to block the Pillar¡¯s visibility of the temple and us. Start building an energy charge in the storm systems, we are going to have to throw everything you can at the Pillar¡± ¡°Fantastic, and we are off¡± She saw the altimeter climb next to him on the hologram and saw out of the windows that the weather had now reached an absolute blizzard, and Hal had now added lighting around the Pillar as well. She watched as the brilliant cracks of blue light illuminated the sky around the Pillar, hitting it like a focused rod. The shields absorbed it, and she saw the glimmer around the Pillar through the storm as the energy was transferred around the monolithic ship. ¡°Drink?¡± he said in what he must have thought was a seductive voice. ¡°We still have friends in that Temple, Hal. I showed you, Angie, before, find her and then send it to the friend that uploaded you to the system¡± ¡°Done, Angie is in the highest level apartments, room 5, with two guards outside the room and a creepy one in the room with her. There are no means of removing the guards without harming the Angie¡± he added the name like he was announcing it. ¡°That¡¯s fine, send it to Ko, friend that¡­¡± ¡°Already done,¡± ¡°The other one,¡± she said frantically, now no longer able to see the temple through the thickening of the weather around the temple, only bursts of light through the storm, only Det¡¯em¡¯s fingertips clearly visible, ¡°Meno, is he okay?¡± ¡°He¡¯s on one of the gliders you sent him,¡± he said in a chipper voice. ¡°Good!¡± said Paba, taking a deep breath. The Kryptea had been on him immediately, which had always been the worst-case scenario. She wanted to tell Hal to bring him back, she wanted to try and protect him, but she needed to stay on course, on mission. ¡°He needs to get to room 5. Help him¡± ¡°I¡¯m afraid I must have misspoken, Empress, when I said on one of the gliders, I meant, on¡± ¡°He¡¯s what?!¡± * Sheppard craned over the balcony of the Traes apartments, now shielded by the Temple¡¯s defences, a bubble shield around them. He didn''t know if they had kicked in automatically or not, which at the moment, did not matter, it was protecting them from the storm outside, that raged like the planet itself was set against him. He could no longer see the Pillar and only knew where it was because of the small flickers of light through the black blizzard where he now knew it was being struck with lightning. The thunderclaps were reverberating around the lands, even with the sound being swept up by the hurricane-like winds. ¡°Smik!¡± he roared, turning his head only slightly from the rising Gliders that climbed the tower. His Dagger class fighters were still being kept out of the temple by the shield being generated by the temple. The glow of runic defences glowing brightly on the patio. ¡°Report, Smik!¡± the Luitenet made his way over, in a panic as Sheppard turned to see the room in chaos, his soldiers scrambling to regain communications, to get some idea of the threat since the Agora had blown and the lower levels became flooded with insurgents. It was only then that the strike had occurred within the temple itself, with a massive blast that threatened to bring down the ancient tower itself. ¡°I¡¯m sorry Commander, we still have not regained communications, the last we had from the Kryptea was that they had engaged with the boy, Meno¡± his luitent spluttered at him, his hands being held together in front of him nervously, like a mouse. ¡°Get the comms back up, use the temples systems to turn this fucking storm off, and regain connection to that Pillar!¡± he roared at the sheepish man whose head dropped in acceptance of the orders. ¡°Moran!¡± he bellowed into the hall and saw the large Traes Commander with his black moustache being held high by his thick neck. He didn''t look ashamed at all, which disgusted Sheppard, this man had no shame, no concept of his own incompetence, ¡°Get your men to shut off controls to the weather system, and send your troops down to support the Kryptea¡± he watched as Pac Traes behind Moran, still standing over his dying wife looked at him venomously. ¡°I am holding you responsible for this Moran, sort it out¡± he snarled, to which the Commander''s moustache shook with words bitten back. He began walking through the patio noting that all of the soldiers were watching him intently, looking for direction, looking for answers, unable to think for themselves in any shape or form. They were all failures to the Dorlec name. ¡°Arm up, barricade the passageways, defend the balcony, there are gliders rising to this location. Do not let these farm hands sully the Dorlec name!¡± he roared, not looking at any soldier directly. ¡°This is now a P3, all tech is authorised, ensure that you handle it appropriately,¡± he said making his way off the patio into the apartments. He never wanted to raise the threat level of an invasion like this, something that should have been so simple, so routine, he had now needed to classify it as an ¡®Escalating Threat¡¯. He passed to the room where former Captain Angela Lawrence was being interrogated and saw the two guards standing outside of the door. His mind was again spinning, he had not dug deep enough to get the answers that he needed and now it was too late, he was paying the consequences of his own negligence. They had help, they had always had help. On Gol they had escaped with help, while on Yeley they had been accepted into the Planetary Head¡¯s home, confidence and Guard. Of course, they had help, but he didn''t expect this level of assistance, a full-scale siege. He had only seen the boy, Meno on the footage, he hadn''t recognised anyone else, he didn''t even know what their support looked like. He had been a fool. He had underestimated them, their support, their abilities. The child who was brought up on a nothing moon, trained by a dying soldier had just killed a Kryptea, something that not even hardened soldiers were capable of. He was more than Sheppard had been told he was, he was more important to outside forces. He was a threat. ¡°Sir, we don¡¯t have any comm¡­¡± The soldier''s neck burst with a flick of Sheppard''s hand. Disgusting, he thought. Breaking protocol out of fear, for not having a comm signal. You salute first. ¡°Open the door,¡± he said to the other who looked down at his former colleague on the ground, his hand raised to his forehead before rushing to push the door for him. The room smelled like blood and Sheppard saw the seer in their red robes towering over the old soldier. Former Captain Angela Lawrence was strapped to a chair, blood still covering her face and exo-suit, looking dazed as the seer gazed into her mind. The seer turned to him, the hood of their robe obscuring its face. ¡°She does not know where they are,¡± said the seer with a calm confidence, as it hulked over her. ¡°Bring her back,¡± he said, his voice now icy. He watched as the seer¡¯s hand moved across her face and her open eyes awoke, she gasped and tried to catch her breath, her gaze shifting around the room trying to latch onto anything that could ground her. ¡°Who are you working with?¡± she was still trying to bring herself to, and she caught eyes with the seer, pulling back into her chair to try and get away from the person who had just invaded each of her thoughts, scrutinising her mind. ¡°Lawrence!¡± Sheppard bellowed at her. Another explosion hit and rattled the side of the temple, dust sifted through from the ceiling and Angela Lawrence had a feint smile that arrived on her face, seeming to piece everything together. ¡°Are you¡­¡± she started trying to catch her breath, ¡°Under attack commander?¡± Sheppard fought the rage in himself and quietly, more venomously asked again. ¡°Did you underestimate the Yeleans?¡± she said with another smile, ¡°Who are you working with?¡± she started to laugh, a horrid sound as it was interspersed with coughing and wheezing. ¡°Are you losing?¡± ¡°Do not play games with me. The Yeleans are not capable of this, who are you working with?¡± ¡°Careful Commander, your Dorlec is showing¡± she said throwing her head back in laughter. The seer slapped her across the face, and the former Captain spat on the ground. ¡°And you have a Pillar and everything,¡± she said, laughing again in the silent room as dust fell from the ceiling. If the seer was still connected to her mind, they would have heard her think, ¡®Meno, Paba, you fucking idiots¡¯.