We land near the Citadel. Sticky, polluted wind bends the towering trees near our landing pad. Perspiration quickly beads along the top of my high collar. Already I do not like this ugly place. Despite the fact that we land here on Citadel grounds, which are far from the nearest cities and surrounded by forests and lakes, Lunaโs air cloys and sticks to the lungs.
On the horizon, just past the spiked spires of the Citadelโs western campus, Earth hovers, swollen and blue, reminding me that I am so far from home. The gravity here is less than Marsโs, only one-sixth Earthโs, and makes me feel unsettled and clumsy. I seem to float when I walk. And even though coordination quickly returns, my body suffers its own lightness with strange feelings of claustrophobia.
Another vessel lands to the north.
โLooks like Bellona silver,โ Roque says quietly, squinting against the sunset.
I chuckle.
He glances back at me. โWhat?โ
โtust imagining having a pulseRocket right about now.โ
โWell, thatโs just โฆ lovely of you.โ He walks along. I follow, eyes lingering on the vessel. โI do love the sunsets of Luna. Like weโre in Homerโs world. Sky a hot shade of fresh-forged bronze.โ
Above, the alien sky melts into night with the long setting of the sun. For two weeks, the daylight will disappear from this part of the moon. Two weeks of night. Luxury yachts cruise through
this strange dayโs end, while nimble Blue-piloted ripWings soar past on patrol like bats glued together from shattered ebony.
The one-sixth gravity lets these Luneborn build to their heartโs desire. And build they do. Beyond the Citadel grounds, the horizon is fenced with towers and cityscape. RungPaths wind everywhere so that citizens can pull themselves through the air with ease. The network of rungs stretch between high towers as would ivy, linking the heavens with the hells of the lowDistricts. Along them, thousands of men and women crawl like ants on vines, while Gray patrol skiffs buzz around the thoroughfares.
The household of Augustus is assigned a villa nestled within thirty acres of pines on Citadel grounds. Itโs a pretty thing among other pretty things in this stately place. There are gardens, paths, fountains carved with little winged boys of stone. All that sort of frivolity.
โFancy a session ofย kravat?โ I ask Roque, nodding to the
training facility beside the villa. โMy mindโs running away with itself.โ
โI canโt.โ Roque winces, stepping out of the way of our fellow lancers and their attendants who file into the villa. โI have to attend the conference on Capitalism in the Governed Age.โ
โIf you wanted a nap, Iโm sure they have beds in the villa.โ โYou joking? Regulus ag Sun is giving the keynote.โ
I whistle. โQuicksilver himself. So youโre going to learn how to make diamonds out of gravel? You hear the rumor about him owning the contracts of two Olympic Knights?โ
โItโs not rumor. Least according to Mother. Reminds me of what Augustus said to the Sovereign at her coronation. โA man is never too young to kill, never too wise, never too strong, but he can damn well be too rich.โ โ
โArcos said that.โ
โNo, Iโm sure it was Augustus.โ
I shake my head. โCheck your facts, brother. Lorn au Arcos said it, and the Sovereign turned to reply, โYou forget, Rage Knight, I am a woman.โ โ
Arcos is as much myth as man, at least to my generation. Reclusive now, he was the Sword of Mars and the Rage Knight for over sixty years. Peerless Knights across the Society have offered
him the deeds to moons if he would but tutor them for a week in his form ofย kravat, the Willow Way. It was he who sent me the knifeRing that killed Apollo and then offered me a place in his house. I rejected it then, choosing Augustus over the old man.
โ โYou forget, I am a woman,โ โ Roque repeats. He cherishes these stories of their empire the way I cherished stories of the Reaper and the Vale. โWhen I get back, letโs talk. Not the usual banter.โ
โYou mean you wonโt yammer on about a childhood crush, drink too much wine, wax poetic about the shape of Quinnโs smile and the beauty of Etruscan grave sites before falling asleep?โ I ask.
His cheeks flush, but he puts a hand over his heart. โOn my honor.โ
โThen bring a bottle of foolishly expensive wine, and we can talk.โ
โIโll bring three.โ
I watch him leave, eyes colder than my smile.
Several of the other lancers attend the conference with Roque. The rest make themselves comfortable as Augustusโs Gray security teams comb the grounds. Obsidian bodyguards trail Golds like shadows. Pinks sway gracefully into the villa in a constant stream, ordered from the Citadelโs Garden by members of the ArchGovernorโs household staff who find themselves bored from travel and seek a little merriment.
A Pink Citadel steward guides me to my room. I laugh when I arrive. โPerhaps there has been a mistake,โ I say, looking around the small room with its adjoining washroom and closet. โIโm not a broom.โ
โI donโt underโโ
โHeโs not a broom, so he wonโt fit in this closet,โ Theodora says, standing in the doorway behind us. โIt is beneath his station.โ She looks around, pert nose sni ng disdainfully. โThese would not even suit as closet toย myย clothes on Mars.โ
โThis is the Citadel. Not Mars.โ The stewardโs pink eyes survey the lines on Theodoraโs aged face. โThere is less room for useless things.โ
Theodora smiles sweetly and gestures to the rose-quartz tree pinned to the manโs breast. โI say! Is that the black poplar of Garden Dryope?โ
โYour first time seeing it, I would guess,โ he says haughtily before turning to me. โI donโt know how they raised your Pinks in Marsโs Gardens,ย dominus, but on Luna your slave should do her best to look less affected.โ
โOf course. How rude of me,โ Theodora apologizes. โI merely thought you would know Matron Carena.โ
The steward pauses. โMatron Carena โฆโ
โWe were girls together in the Gardens. Tell her Theodora says hello and would call on her if time is found.โ
โYouโre a Rose.โ His face goes sheet white.
โWas. All petals wilt. Oh, but do tell me your name. I would so like to commend you to her for your hospitality.โ
He mumbles something quite inaudible and departs, bowing lower to Theodora than to me.
โWas that fun?โ I ask.
โAlways nice to flex a little muscle. Even if everything else is starting to droop.โ
โSeems my career ends where yours began.โ I chuckle morbidly and walk over to the holoDisplay sitting near the bed.
โI wouldnโt,โ she says.
I bite my bottom lip, our signal for spying devices.
โWell, of course, that. But the holoNet is โฆ not where you want to be right now.โ
โWhat are they saying about me?โ
โTheyโre wondering where youโll be buried.โ
I havenโt time to reply before knuckles rap against the frame of my roomโs doorway.
โDominus, Lady tulii requests your presence.โ
I follow Victraโs Pink to her roomโs private terrace. Her bath alone is larger than my bed.
โItโs not fair,โ a voice says from behind the ivory-white trunk of a lavender tree. I turn to see Victra playing with the thorns of a shrub. โYou being cut loose like a Gray mercenary.โ
โSince when have you been concerned with whatโs fair, Victra?โ
โMust you always fence with me?โ she asks. โCome sit.โ Even with the scars that distinguish her from her sister, her long form and luminous face is without true fault. She sits smoking some designer burner that smells like a sunset over a logged forest. Sheโs heavier of bone than Antonia, taller, and seems to have been melted into being, like a spearhead cooling into angular shape. Her eyes flash with annoyance. โIโm as far from an enemy as you have, Darrow.โ
โSo what are you? A friend?โ
โA man in your position could use friends, no?โ โIโd rather have a dozen Stained bodyguards.โ โWho has the money for that?โ she laughs.
I raise an eyebrow. โYou do.โ
โWell, they couldnโt protect you from yourself.โ โIโm a bit more worried about Bellona razors.โ
โWorry? Is that what I saw on your face as we descended?โ She lets a merry sigh escape her lips. โCurious. See, I thought it was dread. Terror. All the truly unsettling things. Because you know this moon will be your grave.โ
โI thought we werenโt fencing anymore,โ I say.
โYouโre right. Itโs just I find you very odd. Or, at least I find your choice in friends to be odd.โ She is sitting in front of me on the lip of the fountain. Her heels scrape against the aged stone. โYouโve always kept me at armโs length while bringing Tactus and Roque close. I understand Roque, even if he is as soft as butter. But Tactus? Itโs like flossing with a viper and expecting not to get bitten. Is it because he was your man at the Institute that you think heโs your friend?โ
โFriend?โ I laugh at the idea. โAfter Tactus told me how his brothers broke his favorite violin when he was a boy, I had Theodora spend half my bank account on a Stradivarius violin from Quicksilverโs auction house. Tactus didnโt thank me. It was as if Iโd handed him a stone. He asked what it was for. I said, โFor you to play.โ He asked why. โBecause weโre friends.โ He looked back down at it and walked away. Two weeks later, I discovered
he took it and sold it and used the money for Pinks and drugs. He is not my friend.โ
โHeโs what his brothers made him to be,โ she notes, hesitating as if reluctant to share her information with me. โWhen do you think heโs ever received something without someone wanting something in return? You made him uncomfortable.โ
โWhy do you think Iโm wary with you?โ I lean closer. โItโs becauseย youย always want something, Victra. tust like your sister.โ โAh. I thought it might be Antonia. Sheโs always ruining things.
Ever since the shewolf gnawed her way out of Motherโs womb and stole human clothes. Good that I was born first, else she might have strangled me in my crib. And sheโs only my half sister anyway. Different fathers. Mother never saw much point in monogamy. You know Antonia even goes by Severus instead of tulii just to take a piss on Mother. Cantankerous brat. And I get saddled with her moral baggage. Ridiculous.โ
Victra plays with the many jade rings on her fingers. I find them odd, contrasting with the Spartan severity of her scarred face. But Victra has always been a woman of contrasts.
โWhy are you talking with me, Victra? I canโt do anything for you. I have no station. I have no command. I have no money. And I have no reputation. All the things you value.โ
โOh โฆ I value other things too, darling. But you do have a reputation, all right. Plinyโs made sure of that.โ
โSo he did play a part in the gossip. Thought Tactus was just running his mouth.โ
โA part? Darrow, heโs been at war with you since the moment you kneeled to Augustus.โ She laughs. โBefore then, even. He counseled Augustus to kill you then and there, or at least try you for the murder of Apollo. Didnโt you know?โ She shakes her head at my blank stare. โThe fact that youโre just now realizing this shows just how ill-equipped you are to play his game. And because of that, youโre going to be killed. Thatโs why Iโm speaking with you. Iโd rather you found an alternative instead of sulking in your beastly quarters. Otherwise, Cassius au Bellona is going to come and heโs going to take a knife and dig right here โฆโ She caresses my chest with a long-nailed finger, etching
the outline of my heart. โโฆ and give his mother her first real meal in years.โ
โThen what is your suggestion?โ
โYou stop being such a little bitch.โ She smiles up at me and holds out a dataSlip. Grudgingly, I take the edge of the thin metal slip, but she holds on, pulling me toward the edge of the fountain, between her legs. Her lips part, her tongue playing along the top as her eyes trace my face, up and up to my eyes, where they try to spark a fire. But thereโs none there; with a feline sigh, she lets the dataSlip go. I run it over my personal datapad and an advertisement for a tavern appears on my display.
โThis isnโt on Citadel grounds,โ I say. โSo?โ
โSo, if I leave, itโs open season on my head.โ โThen donโt advertise your leaving.โ
I take a step back. โHow much are they paying you?โ โYou think this is a setup!โ
โIs it?โ
โNo.โ
โHow do I know youโre telling the truth?โ โMost people canโt afford the truth. I can.โ โOh, thatโs right. I forgot. You never lie.โ
โI am of theย gens Julii.โ She stands slowly, anger uncoiling like
a razor. โMy family trades in commerce enough to buy continents. Who could afford to purchase my honor?ย If โฆย one day I become your enemy, I will tell you. And I will tell you why.โ
โEveryoneโs honest till theyโre caught in a lie.โ
Her laugh is husky and makes me feel small and boyish, reminding me sheโs seven years older than I. โThen stay, Reaper. Trust in chance. Trust inย friends. Hide here till someone buys your contract, and pray they didnโt do it just to serve you up to the Bellona like a suckling pig.โ
I weigh the odds and extend a hand to help her up. โWell, when you put it that way โฆโ
โColonel Valentin?โ Victra asks the shorter of the two Grays who wait for us on the ramp of the shuttle. Itโs a shit can. One of the ugliest fliers Iโve ever seen. Like the front half of a hammerhead shark. I eye the taller of the Grays warily.
โYes,ย domina,โ Valentin says, nodding his cinderblock head
with the rigid precision of a man risen through the ranks. โYou are sure you were not followed?โ
โCertain as death,โ Victra says. โWe should depart fastlike, then.โ
I follow Victra into the shuttle, scanning the grounds behind us. We wore ghostCloaks as soon as we departed Augustusโs villa. A dozen hidden hallways and six old gravLifts later, we arrived in a dusty, seldom-used section of the Citadelโs launch pads. Theodora left us there. She wanted to come, but I wonโt take her where weโre going.
A Gray scans Victra and me for bugs as we board the ship.
The shipโs ramp slides closed behind us. Twelve craggy Grays fill the small passenger hold of the shuttle. Theyโre not the dashing sort. tust craftsmen of a dark trade.
Though there are averages, Colors are diverse in composition due to human genetics and the differing ecosystems throughout the Society. The Grays of Venus are often darker and more compact than those of Mars, but families move and mix and breed. The talent levels in each Color are even more variable than appearance. Most Grays arenโt destined for anything more than patrolling shopping centers and city streets. Some go to the armies. Some to the mines. But then there are the Grays who were born a special breed of wicked and clever and have been trained all their lives to hunt the Gold enemies of their Gold masters. Like these in the shuttle with us. They call them lurchers
โafter the mutt dogs of Earth crossbred for uncommon stealth, cunning, and speed, all for one purpose: killing things bigger than they are.
โWeโre bound for Lost City and itโs just the twelve of you?โ I ask.
I know theyโre enough. I just donโt like Grays. So I push their buttons.
They eye me with the quiet reserve of a family meeting a stranger on the road. Valentinโs the father. Heโs built like a squat block of dirty ice carved by a rusted blade, and his sun-blasted face is dark and set with quick eyes. His lieutenant, Sun-hwa, leans toward us, tough and gnarled as an olive tree.
Both are Earthborn by the looks of their continentally ethnic features. These Grays wear no triangular badge of the Societyโs Legion on their civilian street clothes. Means theyโve served their mandatory twenty years.
โWeโre tasked with your protection,ย dominus,โ says Valentin as
Sun-hwa loads an exotic circular weapon on the inside of her left wrist. Looks plasma based. โMy team has prepared a secure route. Estimated traveling time: twenty-four minutes.โ
โIf Pliny finds out where Iโm going, or if the Bellona know Iโm out of the Citadel โฆโ
โThe lurchers know the situation,โ Victra says. โI donโt see a Gold badge. Mercenaries?โ
โMeans we are good enough to live this long,ย dominus,โ
Valentin says flatly. โWeโve prepared for all eventualities. Contingency plans and support have been organized.โ
โHow much support?โ
โEnough. Weโre just the transporters,ย dominus.โ His mouth twitches into a smile and I take his word for it. โBigger problem than the Bellona is third parties thinking an opportunityโs just stumbled their way. Where weโre going, there will be a hell of a lot of third parties,ย dominus. Shit complicates our ROI. Sun-hwa?โ โWear this.โ Sun-hwa tosses me a bag of plain clothing. Her voice drones on in a monotone drawl. โYouโre tall canโt do shitall about that but weโll do a quick dye job with this this and this.โ
She tosses Victra another bag. โFor you. Boss thought youโd dress too fancy.โ
Victra laughs at that.
โMuzzles off, boys,โ Valentin barks as the ship trembles and rises in the air. โWeโre live.โ Thumpers and burners prime in practiced hands. Staccato sound of steel on steel. Like metal knuckles cracking as magnetic rounds go into chambers. The lurchers conceal weapons in hidden holsters over tight scarabSkin armor. Three wear illegal wrist weapons. I eye the contraband as
I slip into my scarabSkin. It drinks in the light, a strange pupil- like black. More the absence of color than anything else. Better than the duroArmor we had at the Institute, itโll stop some blades and the occasional projectile weapon like the common scorcher.
The ship shudders as its main engines overtake the vertical thrusters.
โTalon and Minotaur, be advised. Icarus is on the move,โ Valentin rasps into his com. โRepeat. Icarus is on the move.โ