[Memory core # 77]

Memory Core Start

The zoo bombing hadn’t scared us off, far from it. Peckolin, Candor, and I were spurred on by the manhunt that followed, meeting in the dark corners of Vezwincourt to plan our next strike. Peck never explained why he and Candor hated the royal family, but my own hatred burned like a pyre. Except for the princess—I couldn't hate her. Somehow, we had struck up an unlikely friendship. But the rest of them? They could all rot in the gutter.

I clutched the magical stone Peck had given me, its weight solid in my palm, and hurled it through Chancellor Kloeran’s window. Glass shattered, and within seconds, flames burst across the top floor. Good, I thought. His house—a den of slaves, addicts, and vile iniquities—deserved it. I had to step back into the cover of darkness to contain my rage. This was just a distraction, after all. Peck and Candor were after something bigger tonight.

Slavery. My fists clenched at the thought. Peck had told me about the Red Drug, how Kloeran’s “guests” were forced to produce it. A drug that destroyed lives. A drug that had taken my father. I swallowed the bitterness rising in my throat. My father’s addiction had turned him into a ghost long before he died. All because of men like Kloeran. Men who profited off the suffering of others.

Not tonight, I thought, stepping deeper into the shadows as the magical alarm wailed. Peckolin had warned me it would sound the second the window broke. That didn’t matter. The distraction was the whole point.

Just then, the rhythmic clanking of armored boots echoed through the street. Showtime. The Vezwincourt guards arrived in their polished, shining armor, like they were parading rather than protecting anything. The fire reflected off their metal, and it would have been funny if it weren’t for the wizard among them, conjuring giant orbs of water from thin air.

“That’s my cue,” I muttered under my breath.

The water wizard lobbed an orb at the flames, and it smashed into the building with a deafening crash, sending chunks of brick flying in every direction. Dressilan Brick—rare and expensive—scattered across the street. The wind caught the gold-leaf patterns, swirling them into the night sky like autumn leaves.

Heh. Careful now, don’t hurt the rich man’s house too much. I smirked, the irony not lost on me.

Then, from the alley, a low voice magically crackled in my ear. “You set?” It was Peckolin. His tone was calm, but I could hear the edge of excitement there.

“Almost.” I knelt, pulling my pack off my shoulder and digging into it. My fingers brushed the explosives—Peck’s “Screaming Lobbers,” magical bombs with legs. Real military-grade stuff, something we should never have had our hands on. But when a wizard’s involved, well, there are no real secrets.

“You said Kloeran wasn’t home tonight, right?” I whispered.

“Not according to our informant,” Peck’s voice replied, a little impatient. “Just plant the bombs and get clear.”

“Relax, Peck. This ain’t my first run.” I could almost hear him roll his eyes through the communication charm.

Candor, who had been quiet until now, chimed in, his voice like a shadow. “You’ve got sixty seconds, tops. Those guards will start a search if that wizard gets a clue.”

“Sixty seconds? You doubt me?” I grinned, grabbing two of the Screaming Lobbers. I twisted their fuses, then carefully placed them at the edge of the alley, their little feet twitching as they readied to run.

“Thirty seconds now,” Candor’s voice warned.

I stepped back into Peckolin’s magical darkness, blending into the shadows as easily as breathing. Right on time.

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The bombs scuttled out into the street, their legs scraping against the cobblestones, and I watched from my hiding spot as they zeroed in on their target: the water wizard. His back was turned, too focused on putting out the flames.

“Peck?” I whispered, barely containing my anticipation.

“Now.”

The explosions hit, and the wizard’s robes ignited with a brilliant flash. His scream echoed through the street, a high, agonized sound that sent a rush of adrenaline through me. The guards whirled around in panic, their shiny armor clinking as they fumbled to figure out what was happening.

I stifled a laugh, covering my mouth as the chaos unfolded. “Beautiful.”

“Get out. We’re done here,” Peck’s voice ordered, but there was a grin in his tone too.

I slung my pack over my shoulder and melted further into the shadows. The night was ours, and with each strike, we were one step closer to toppling them all.

End memory.

It registered just then, like a punch to the gut, that Blake could see the cores. Something about it gnawed at me. How? I thought, trying to steady my breathing. Whenever I’d had cores before — with Crystal, Klericho, even Thomas — none of them ever acknowledged their existence. It was like they were invisible to everyone but me. But Blake had seen it, plain as day, and that shouldn’t have been possible. My mind whirled as another realization struck me: the two memories I had seen on this floor weren’t fake.

I couldn’t place them on the timeline of my scrambled past, but they were real. I knew it. For the first time in what felt like ages, I was certain of something. The thought made me want to sit down right then and there, start sketching out a timeline, chart everything — try to make sense of it all. But this wasn’t the time. Or was it?

“What was that?” Blake asked, her voice muffled behind her hand as she stifled a yawn.

“A memory core,” I replied, my throat dry. “Something of my life before here. I don’t remember much of anything.”

“Huh.” Blake raised an eyebrow, her expression curious but casual, like this wasn’t the first time she’d seen something bizarre. “And here I figured you were skittish about us because of a lover.”

I shifted uncomfortably, her words cutting too close to the truth. “I had one, yes, but I barely remember her, and what I do remember... isn’t exactly reliable.” More like a hazy dream, I thought bitterly. A dream that won’t leave me alone.

We sank into the couches in the waiting room, the plush cushions swallowing us up as if we had all the time in the world. The tension of the moment loosened, and I let myself breathe, the heaviness in my chest easing slightly. We had the upper hand for now, and William wasn’t likely to leave his office anytime soon.

I leaned back, staring at the ceiling, trying to let my mind clear, but Blake’s next words cut through the stillness.

“It’s just… I don’t have time for a relationship. I need to focus on clearing this place.”

She looked at me, her green eyes piercing, but there was no pressure behind them. Just honesty. And something else, too — something playful. “We don’t even need one,” she said, her voice dipping into a soft, almost seductive tone. “I like you. You like me. It’s all about the pleasure of each other’s company. Lust doesn’t have to be a bad thing.” She purred the last part, twirling a lock of her long, blonde hair between her fingers, her lips quirking up into that familiar smirk.

My pulse quickened. I tried to ignore the warmth spreading in my chest, tried to focus on something else, anything else. But she was right in front of me, bright and alive in the dim light. Her restless energy was infectious — that wild ambition in her eyes, the spark that made me feel like I could lose myself in her so easily.

Why am I hesitating? I thought, frustration gnawing at me. Why am I worrying about a memory of someone I might never see again? Someone who may not even be real.

“I–I…” My words faltered as I looked at her — really looked at her — for the first time since she’d saved my life. Her eyes sparkled with a dangerous kind of energy, her foot tapping against the floor in a rhythm that matched the restless beat of my own heart. Everything about her screamed freedom. She’s right here, right in front of me, free for the taking. And yet...

Before I could find the words, Blake leaned forward, her voice dropping to a gentle murmur. “Tell you what,” she said, her eyes locking onto mine. “We keep it casual and focused on fun. And if we ever see her, we stop. No harm, no foul.” She smiled, that stunning, crooked smile that had become my undoing, and I felt my resolve start to crumble. This could be simple, I thought. This could be easy. Why am I holding back?

But before I could say anything, the alarm blared.