Soon, he read from the passage inside.
“She injects herself with grief. Each dose sharpens her focus. Each dose erases her reflection. One of these doses will eventually stop the heart. But we cannot stop. If we do… If I do...
Hmm… Where was I? Right. Test #2. Below are the findings:”
- Joan Rafe’s lost notes, recovered by the Federation of Flesh in the Inferose.
Hours later, Dante stood in the Skull of Heron’s Wing. The lights illuminated his surroundings as he eyed the charts before him. With Archimedes still out of commission, he would be the one to manually fly the ship. The only other person on the crew who knew how to do so was Rejo.
And for all that the human trusted the Araki, he wished to hold the reins himself.
The rest of his crew sat nearby on the cushy chairs of a Centurion’s ship, barring the doctor and mechanic. Sonna stared at a paper map of the nearby Sectors while Rejo leaned over her shoulder, nodding as if he could read. Beside the duo was Lucius with crossed arms.
Sweat dribbled down his temples as he was pulled from training for this debrief. He hadn’t stopped after opening all the locked doors. Similarly, Astraeus straightened himself, inwardly excited for his first non-emergency trip on a starship.
Even the ghost of a former enemy remained silent. The phantasmal figure of Eidolon, who stayed within the ship as he could slip beneath the doors with ease, waited for Dante’s words. They came shortly, arriving after the man craned his neck toward the holographic map denoting the route he was planning.
“Two jumps until Habituar B. Means we can reach the meeting time with a detour or two. Anywhere you want us to drop you off at, Eidolon?” Dante said with a glance toward the floating figure, his fingers flipping away at the holograms.
Eidolon, in response, shook his head, “No. You have not yet done as I asked.”
Dante bit his lip while the others showed signs of curiosity. A raised eyebrow there, uncrossed arms here. The human shrugged as he outlined their next jump, “Right. The pond. Figured you might want to make one on your own. But makes sense. We’re deep in Empire-territory right now.”
While hovering over toward a seat of his own, the Revenant Tide of Geist agreed, “Yes. The safest place is with you all. I would be amenable with my harmony being here, too.”
The captain nodded as he noted Eidolon’s words in his head. He’d have to get Archimedes, or even himself, to segment a portion of the starship away for the deal he had agreed to inside the Inferose.
Making a life-like pond on a starship won’t be too hard, right? I’ve never seen it before, but it sounds doable. Hmm... I’ve got roughly ninety thousand credits from the job and the arena. I doubt that’s enough for renovations. We’ll have to make some more money.
He cemented the route for Heron’s Wing as he turned to face the others. Dante splayed out his hands and said, “Rejo will join Claudius for his Centurion exam. In the meantime, I want us to do some merc jobs, build up some funds, and then see what we can do about these upcoming MDs. From what I’ve heard from locals and the web, this is big. All three empires are pushing for this. But we need to be ready. So. Let’s get ready.”
Lucius scoffed lightly as if he were expecting these exact words, but the gazes of the rest hardened. Rejo’s brows slammed together while Arido billowed from Sonna’s fingertips unconsciously. Astraeus, however, was the most pronounced.
He stood and bowed, speaking for all to hear, “I will be ready. My current goal is to elevate my Frigo and get a rudimentary grasp of Hydro. May you help me with this, Dante?”
The captain of the makeshift group narrowed his eyes at the Anathema. But he didn’t refuse. He merely nodded as he pressed his hand down on the engine’s ignition.
“Of course, as long as you do the same for me.”
****************************
A medium-sized starship, built for a crew of at most two dozen, wobbled through space silently after emerging from the depths of the Lightsea. It flew toward an enormous white orb, the frozen world dwarfing its hundred-meter-long frame.
Lights flickered and bloomed on the surface of the planet’s only continent, yet few other starships soared in the skies or nearby space. The atmosphere’s chilling winds rattled against the Heron’s Wing as it swiftly descended to the planet’s only Starport.
A landing bay opened wide, already beckoned for by the systems within the advanced starship. Then, the hangar in the rear of the ship extended with a hiss, revealing two men clothed in sleek clothing, the contours of the metallic armor meant for the cold reflecting the snowflakes that swarmed their faces.
Dante strode down the metallic walkway with Rejo behind him. He spoke into his wrist, the communicator sending his voice to his vice, “Keep your heads down. I don’t want to be seen. I know eyes are on Claudius. Quick. Easy. In and out. But be ready to support us.”
An affirmative came from the other end as the human jostled the pack on his back, an odd-shaped, pole-like bag of dark cloth on his back shifting wildly with his movement. Rejo’s eyes shone from within his helmet, protecting him from the chill. Dante nodded to him from his raised hood.
The two walked to the officer awaiting them and cleared their credentials. False as they were, some backwater planet like this wouldn’t have the capability to see through them. As such, they strolled through as if this was a refueling site.
It was anything but.
Dante’s legs carried him from the miniature Starport, less than a tenth of Crislend’s size, into the nearby street. The shadow of an Araki loomed behind him, and they approached their meeting location. It wasn’t far, simply a few blocks away.
The restaurant set was one of those down-on-their-luck. It sat before Dante’s nearing gaze as poor and family-owned, the kind of thing easily ruined by sprawling organizations. While the Roman Empire frowned on corporations and kept most things to the government, Glaniece was not the same.
It thrived from oligarchs. Five families practically owned the entirety of its territories.
At least we’re not bordering Ostacean or in it. A ma and pa like this doesn’t exist over there.
Dante laughed at the thought in his head as he opened the door with the bell chiming above him. In Ostacean, the corporations ran everything. Absolutely everything. They held no qualms for holding their monopolies and doing downright ruinous things to their people.
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
However, that cruelty was the only reason they remained. As the smallest in population and overall owned Sectors, Ostaceans had to make up for their bite. The experiments Joan had put Dante through were rare in Roman territory but were the norm in Ostacean.
The memories flickered out of Dante’s mind as he spotted a red-haired Tianshe sitting beside a young man with his legs up on the table in boredom. Once more, the human sized up Eight, unsure of what the boy truly was.
He held pieces of a half dozen races, the eyes of humans, the hair of a Tianshe, but the nose of a Weren. It was hard to place him. Even harder to do so with any mote of confidence after what he had seen of the boy’s past.
Shaking his head, he sat down at the table across from them. Rejo joined his captain without noise.
For a moment, the four were silent. Claudius eyed Dante as the latter pulled down his hood, and Rejo clicked off his helmet, sighing with the heated air inside the building.
Soon, an Irgen waitress, her spindly tail waving behind her, walked up to the table smiling and said with the utmost false joy, “Hey there, I’m Sandra! You guys must be from off-world! I hope you enjoy your stay here, even if it’s just for the day. Here at Merel’s, you have to get the Harebird ribs. They are to die for! Need some time to—”
Eight waved her off, ordering for the whole table at one glance with little care, “Yeah, yeah. We’ll have four of those. That sounds fine. Get me some... got whiskey?”
The woman narrowed her eyes, forcing aside her dissatisfaction. Then, she raised an open palm, “ID? You look a little young, sir.”
With the most annoyed sigh, a badge emerged from Eight’s hand, “Yeah? So what? This lets me ignore it. Get me it on the rocks, please.”
The gasp that crawled out of the woman’s strangled expression broke a slight grin on Eight’s face. Claudius groaned as he pulled at his crewmate’s hand, “I’m sorry for him. Don’t treat us any special. We just want some peace. Thank you.”
With a nod, Sandra shuffled away to fulfill their order. As she left earshot, Claudius elbowed the Anomaly. His message was clear, though he didn’t say a word. He wasn’t happy Eight exposed their status when they were trying to be stealthy about this.
In response, the teen just shrugged and leaned further into his bench as he said, “Can die for my motherland against horrors beyond imagination but can’t get a fucking beer. C’mon. It’s not like we are going to get caught or anything. I mean, we’re in the middle of bumfuck nowhere.”
Dante glanced from Eight to Claudius with a raised eyebrow. Then he asked, “Were we?”
Claudius shook his head. But that wasn’t enough for the human. He rolled his wrist and asked again, “Were we followed? Check with your eyes. Go as far as you can. If you want this done right, we can’t take any chances. Without your damn eyes, I would’ve pushed this meeting back a week to scope out any arrivals.”
The Judge groaned but didn’t disagree. Vermillions weren’t accustomed to such underground tricks. Penances? This was what they lived and breathed.
Violet light gathered within Claudius’ pupil for a moment before the gaze of the other three. Then, a moment later, equal parts blood and sweat dripped from the corners of his eyes. He flicked his eyes up toward Dante and said with a shiver, “I was. You were right. Shit. Praetor Oswen shows up in eight hours. He wants to see me. The vision ended at his office’s door.”
“Does he know?” Dante pressed, leaning forward with an inward curse.
Claudius shook his head and answered, “No. Not yet, at least. We should have enough time. I’m sure he’s suspicious, though. Praetors are too shrewd. Too experienced. I bet he’s wondering why I came here when I should be prepping for the exams.”
Rejo was the next to speak as the conversation continued downhill, “Will we eat? I’m starving.”
Three pairs of eyes fell onto the Araki. Dante laughed while the other two feared for their upcoming trials as the human set some credits on the table.
“No. We need to get this over with. Have them feed you later, okay?” Dante said, standing and pulling his hood back up.
The four hurried out of the restaurant, ignoring Sandra's calls behind them. As they stepped away down the street, following Claudius’ lead, Dante paused for a second. Flurries of snow covered the street and shot into his eyes.
He squinted, feeling as though someone was watching him, observing him. It was some hidden piece of his mind, the bit of him that would never go away no matter how many years he could spend at rest. His pupils scanned the street. He noted each and every alleyway, tapping the roofs with his eyes, and even checked the windows of nearby buildings.
But nothing caught Dante’s senses.
Someone’s here. And they’re good. Real good. It’s not Oswen, though. That means we continue.
He stepped to keep up with the others, hurrying his pace as he whispered into his wrist once more, “I feel like I’m being watched. If Arch is up to it, get him to check surveillance nearby. Lucius, Astraeus, and Sonna get ready for a quick evac.”
A rumble came through from the other side. It was Sonna.
“Are you sure? I heard Claudius from the open line. No one else should be here. Is this paranoia really worth it? What if we get caught because of Arch's actions? I think you’re overreacting because of Crislend.” Sonna’s voice showed genuine concern for her captain, but Dante shook his head.
“Just do it. It's worth the risk.”
“Okay.”
****************
Sonna stepped through the halls of the starship to reach Archimedes’ room. The boy sat upright on his bed, his back placed against a wall as he flexed his right and left hands. One conjured slivers of ice while the other puffed with motes of steam.
While impressed with how his Tide was coming along, Sonna had something for him, “You up to help out?”
Arch’s head whipped to the newcomer. He hadn’t noticed her, but his mind replayed the noises in his memory. A moment later, he nodded in assent.
“Great. Dante feels like he’s being followed. Can you pull up the cameras on the street they were on? See if you can spot anyone suspicious? And let me know immediately if you find anything,” Sonna said as she handed the boy her communicator, the moving dot of Dante and Rejo easily visible.
“I’ll try...” Arch’s words were slow and unsure, but he gradually regained some confidence as he stared at the technology before him. His head raised to meet Sonna’s offbeat smile. “I’ll do it. I promise.”
Sonna reached out with a hand, yet didn’t touch the young man. She merely patted the air beside him as she said, “Good. I know you’ll get it done.”
Then, she turned around and swiftly rushed out with a wave. She had to get Astraeus and Lucius combat-ready. Meaning she had to pull the two psychos out of training. All they seemed to do recently was throw themselves at each other in search of growing stronger.
Rejo often joined them, and so did Dante, but these two were different.
Sonna stepped up to the gym they had in the starship and paused. Her heart ached for Astraeus, knowing whom he had lost. Thanaris was the reason why the Dirge flailed against life itself for strength.
She understood what he felt. The weakness. The... uselessness.
For someone as strong as him... she couldn’t imagine what that would do to his mind. He was already so far above the rest. It typically took three of the crew to take down Astraeus in training. Still... he could only watch as his mentor, his only ‘family’ died.
Sonna tightened her fist as she opened the airlock door. Inside, she saw Joan flip beneath Astraeus’ palm of flickering space. Then, he let out a kick, tossing the Harenlar across the room. He had been trying to use his Stigmata in more offensive ways, leaving his Tide for sole defense, but improvements were still needed.
It made sense in her mind, especially as she saw Lucius swing a hatchet for the Anathema’s nape, only for a bubble of snow to wrap around the blade and catch it. Astraeus twisted around as the Martian gave up on his weapon, instead throwing a punch.
Knuckles met gut, yet the Dirge didn’t buckle despite the hundreds of pounds of force. Snow gathered at the impact zone, distributing the damage while Astraeus lunged for Lucius’ throat with his claws.
The terrifying Stigmata extended his range, and Sonna knew it would reach Lucius even as the man struggled to evade. She couldn’t let such an injury occur when they may be needed at any moment.
“Hey! Stop!” her shout left Lucius sliding backward, unharmed, as Astraeus turned to face her. Surprise lit up on the Weren and Anathema as four arms hugged the back of the latter.
A syringe rested upon each finger of Joan’s many arms as she whispered with joy, “See? I can fight. One for me. Zero for you.”
Astraeus groaned as he flung her off his body with a rough jerk. Joan flipped once in the air before landing on her hands and feet with a snarky grin.
Lucius ignored their glares at each other as he looked at Sonna, “What’s wrong? I thought we had at least an hour before anything could even happen.”
Sonna shrugged, relaying Dante’s words, “Same. But Dante thinks he’s being followed. I’m still on the open line, and they are just now getting to the safehouse, but I want you three out there. Tail the tail and help Arch's search. We must know who it is and stop them before they get the word out.”
The veteran nodded as he took off his training gear and went to find winter clothes. He could handle the cold just fine, and so could Astraeus, but that would only draw attention. Meanwhile, Joan put her hands on her hips.
She wasn’t happy about Sonna’s orders. And she made it clear by saying, “Why me? Send Eidolon or something.” Then, she waded over to the weapons rack and unloaded the knives she had picked up.
Sonna groaned at Joan’s difficulty, but she stepped up to the challenge nonetheless.
Standing beside the doctor, the Weren raised her voice and held no room for negotiation as she channeled all that she had heard from Dante, “No. It has to be you. Lucius and Astraeus can fight whoever is following him, but you are the recon. It sucks, I know, but you and Arch will be the ones to find this guy.”
Joan tilted her head, crossing all four arms at once. Her face held both annoyance and suspicion as she just wanted to prove a point to Astraeus, who complained about her lack of training. She made up for it with her expertise. This kind of thing pissed her off, and she let everyone know, “Hmm... Okay, then. What about you? What will you be doing? Twiddling your thumbs while Dante runs the show?”
“No. I’m running this. Dante will be busy in... about a single minute on his Lightsea Pact. We can’t bother him, and he trusts us to deal with this in the meantime. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have said a word about it. Do this, and I’m sure Dante will be happy to give you more of our ever-depleting budget,” Sonna said as she tried to reason with the doctor and stand up for herself.
A second of stillness passed. Astraeus stood away, figuring out how to put on below-zero clothing while Lucius stockpiled more arms on himself than an army would have. No one said a word. They simply listened and waited for Joan’s reply.
Everyone found her difficult to work with.
But they couldn’t deny one thing. She was the best there was. And luckily... she could be bargained with, unlike some of the psychos out in the sea of stars.
“Fine. Works with me.”
A sigh of relief fell from Sonna’s lips as the doctor strode away. The Weren glanced at the other two, but neither gave her attention. She nearly crumpled as her ear turned back to the open line.
“Okay, let’s get started. Sit across from me. No, not like that. Meditatively. Yes. There you go. Hands on knees.”
I should’ve said no to being his second. This is going to give me a heart attack.