When the short-sleep ended and the Emperor and Empress retreated below the horizon, the Miriani in the cavern stirred. Dokai was the first to wake—he stretched and pulled Iysik off himself. He produced a small metal pot from a cupboard and moved away from the sleeping pod.
He lit a small fire and placed the pot on top, filling it with a large amount of pumpkin-pears. Dokai planned to add some dried cereal after the heat transformed the fruit into a wholesome paste. It would be a good breakfast.
Rui was the next to stir; she jumped out of bed and moved toward Dokai.
“Blessed night,” she said, as she took a seat on a wooden box next to Dokai.
“Blessed be,” Dokai replied and peered over his shoulder at the sleeping Makoe and Temri. “Did she wake again?”
Rui hugged herself. “Yes, but not for long this sleep. I think that maybe... Mraah provides comfort to her?”
Dokai was sceptical. He stirred the pumpkin-pears in the pot with an old stick. “They met yesterday...”
“True they did, but you know how Temri is.” Rui looked over her shoulder and whispered to Dokai, “She gets attached fast. And you can't deny Mraah has the same vibe as Memri.”
“You think she reminds Temri of her sister?”
Rui clasped her hands. “I do. Now the question is, is that good or bad?”
“I wish I knew. Family has a way of burrowing deep and grabbing hold.” Rui’s ears curled. She tried to get a taste of Dokai’s cooking, but he swatted her finger away with the cooking stick. The boy looked at her and asked, “You are worried about your cousin?”
“Yes. How could I not be? I left him. What if he got in trouble?”
Dokai blinked a couple of times, thinking. “I don’t think so. He probably got hit, yes, but not much more. He has excellent grades.”
It was time for Dokai to add the cereal. He did so with a swift motion of his hand. He continued, “So even if he did get caught, he wouldn’t look too suspicious. Maybe 30 lashes maximum; the Academy would want to keep it under wraps.”
“You still think me not helping him is a good idea?” asked Rui.
Dokai clasped his hands. “What you and I can never have—Hiri can have effortlessly... What I would give for a second chance in the Academy...” He closed his eyes.
Rui offered a kind hand on his shoulder. He accepted it.
Iysik finally managed to wake; he had a bad case of bed-fur, and as he approached the cooking breakfast, Rui grinned at him.
“What?” Iysik asked.
Rui cleared her throat and looked to Dokai. Dokai smiled and said, “Nothing. Please sit. The fruit mash will be ready soon.”
Makoe and Temri were the last to wake. As Temri did so, she looked at Makoe, bleary-eyed. Her ears shot up, and she moved away. Makoe opened her eyes too, slowly, faking sleepiness.
“What’s wrong?” she asked.
Temri blinked a couple of times. “Uh, I—I didn’t expect you? If that makes sense.”
Makoe smiled at her. “It sure does. I’m new, not yet in your long-term memory. Long-term is the last to wake.”
“Uh...” Temri said, ears curling, “Yes, let’s go with that.”
Her nose twitched as she took in the fragrance of cooking pumpkin-pears. Temri lit up with a smile. “Oh, you have got to try this!” she said and pulled Makoe toward the group.
They all sat around the small fire, its smoke rising into the large volume of the cavern. It was small enough that it would be filtered out through the opening in the cavern wall. Makoe looked around and asked, “What is this place?”
“Used to be a water reservoir,” said Temri.
Dokai added, “But the Stars have not been kind these years. Little water remains anywhere.”
Makoe smelled the mash. It was rich in nutrients and had a good amount of water. If Dokai didn’t overcook it, the water within would sustain the group for an entire day.
“You took up residence here?”
Iysik clasped his hands. “Aye. Was abandoned. Nobody else wants to move in—they all think the water will come back any day now.”
Dokai lifted the food from the fire and poured a generous amount into each of the five deep wooden plates he had on hand. A plate was offered to everyone, and they all dug in, angling the plate so that they could drink the mash.
Rui was too eager; she managed to burn her tongue.
“Ah! Hot!” she exclaimed and began panting.
“As it always is. Yet you always think this time will be different,” Dokai said, smiling.
Temri had finished her meal first. She brought the loot she and Makoe lifted off the real Nam Brarom. She opened the chest to the group.
“We use this. Buy an explosive,” she said.
“Giant’s shadow...” Iysik’s ears curled. “Why does everyone want a bomb these days? What happened to good old-fashioned arson?”
Rui looked at him. “I believe this sends a bigger message.”
Temri grinned. “Spot on. Mraah helped me get the real location of the Family’s stash yesterday. All we need is to visit the seller.”
Elsewhere, Makoe had finished creating the first batch of tools needed to make the statelite. She was in two places at the same time, a trivial effort for an Imperial mind. PesKal had just introduced alternating current back into Miriani society, and Makoe was congratulating him.
“You gonna go to the same dude as Halan’s crew?” asked Dokai.
“Yup. The Alm dude. Everyone knows his stuff never fails to impress.”
Makoe sent a warning to PesKal.
Temri declared, “Eat up; we go after breakfast.”
And go they did. The group dressed for a longer trek toward the Alm estate. They hid daggers and hooks on their persons and went to leave the cavern. As they walked through the tight tunnel toward the grander city, Temri pulled Makoe aside and asked, “You are up for this? War with the Family?”
Makoe had no plans to let the bomb explode and harm a single Miriani. But she had to build trust, especially with Temri.
“Why not? I like a bit of excitement,” said Makoe. Matrioshka watched as the pair discussed their lives. Temri was cagey, only letting it be known that she was a part of the Family and now hated the entire organization.
Makoe had managed to spin a tapestry of convincing lies, in no small part thanks to PesKal’s data.
The group walked across underground Erdon, intentionally avoiding the surface. It seemed that the criminal underbelly preferred the shadows offered by the underground. A couple of times, the group had to run into an alcove, hidden from passing members of the Family.
“Is it just me, or are there even more of them than usual?” asked Dokai.
Makoe wondered how they could tell members of the Family at a glance, until she saw the other citizens of Erdon move away and offer them as much space as possible—like an aura of fear. The six-strong group of the Family passed Temri and her crew in peace.
Soon they were forced above ground. The underground Erdon spread only as far as the city above it did. Since Yim’s estate was some 20 minutes by foot away from the city, the group emerged aboveground.
They gathered their goods and moved to the corners of the streets, not making eye contact with anyone.
The Miriani knew to avoid them; the five adolescent Miriani were obviously up to no good. And even worse, by the golden-furred standards of the 11th Kingdom, they were of the wrong color.
The group crested a hill and watched the fields pass them by. Dokai commented on the vegetables that were in season. He critiqued each field, talking about proper amounts of shade, nutrients, and soil softness. From the way that he spoke, coupled with his admission and regret over not having a second chance at the Academy, Makoe concluded he must have some learning in agriculture.
PesKal invited himself into Makoe’s virtual then; he floated and landed next to her as they walked.
“Did you see that?” he asked.
Makoe shook her head. “No. I was focused on the atomic factory and this here group. Dokai has a way of talking that makes you listen—even if it is about crops.”
“The captain,” PesKal said. “I had never seen her this forceful. She took momentary control of my lattice. Stole something that belonged to Yim.”
Matrioshka watched their interaction, due to the Enslavement bond which even allowed her to control PesKal’s lattice in the first place. Both of her crewmates knew this, yet there were no other options.
Makoe gritted her teeth. She made a request for privacy to her captain.
Matrioshka denied it.
Makoe’s brow furrowed. She looked toward the palace and her captain’s lattice. She said, “That’s how it’s gonna be, huh?”
Matrioshka appeared in front of them, her eyes sad. “I thought you said you trusted me?”
Makoe pointed at PesKal, whose fins had yet to calm from Matrioshka’s assault on his autonomy.
“It had to be done,” Matrioshka said.
“Why?”
Matrioshka looked her directly in the eye. “You don’t have the clearance.”
Makoe's eyes widened. She made a fist but relaxed it immediately. “As you wish, Captain.”
Matrioshka looked over the pink woman, shook her head, and vanished back to her lattice.
The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.
PesKal was looking at Makoe. She said, “There you go. Our captain has clearance.”
PesKal bowed. “It is as you say. Yet I did not expect it. Our captain does not have a history with aggression.”
Makoe shook her head. “We know nothing of her. You could try asking Rhea, though I don’t think you will get very far.”
PesKal seemed to consider this but was finally distracted by the group Makoe was with. “They are here for Yim?” he asked, just as they passed the gate to the mansion.
Yim was in the workshop, turning over every nook and cranny in search of the copper sphere Matrioshka had taken. He was panting hard, screaming for Bemri to help him. He clutched the papers and the diamond cube in his hands, refusing to let them be lost as well.
“Young master! I can’t find it,” Bemri said, while looking into an old closet.
Yim looked over a pile of old metal. “Don’t say that. It can’t be so... How could I have lost it!?” Yim turned sharply towards PesKal’s cube.
“You,” he whispered, and approached the cube. His lungs were getting ready to yell something when a knock came on the door.
Those were Temri’s hands which banged on the wood. Iysik and Rui were looking around, feeling anxious.
“Oh, by the Stars. What now?” asked Bemri, approaching the door. He spied the ruffians outside and yelped. Yim joined him and asked, “Who is it, old man?”
“Youth. Trouble. Illicit activities,” Bemri warned, moving away.
Yim looked through the spy hole and said, “Go away. We’re closed.”
Temri smiled, produced the chest full of silver, and opened it – displaying its contents to the door.
PesKal saw Yim tense, counting the coins. “That is a considerable amount of money,” said PesKal.
“We stole it,” provided Makoe.
Yim took another moment to compose himself and opened the door. He stood up straight and asked, “How may I be of assistance?”
In the background, Bemri had begun to pray for his master’s soul.
Temri looked Yim from head to toe. “You’re the guy?” she asked dubiously.
Yim’s ear twitched. “Perhaps. What do you need?”
Temri inhaled, spared a glance towards the run-down state of the mansion, and grinned. “Suppose you are desperate? Selling bombs to the likes of Halan and Sumi…”
Yim inhaled. “Great. You want more explosives.” His ears curled. “Very well. Come in.”
He moved away from the door, and the stream of Miriani passed him by. Bemri yelped as he saw Temri’s tattoos and Iysik’s scars. Iysik grinned at the man.
They gathered in the kitchen, and Yim and Temri sat at the table.
Yim was the first to speak: “How much do you need?”
Temri looked at him. “Uh… We want to blow up a building.”
Yim looked tired. “That doesn’t tell me anything. How big a building? What’s inside the building? Do you want time to move away, or are you looking to commit suicide?”
Temri looked to Iysik. “You remember that barber’s shop on Second Street?”
Iysik considered the question. “The one with the brothel above it or the one below the smithy?”
“I assume the smithy. Attracts less traffic.”
“Yeah,” said Iysik. “About 12 meters by 6 meters. 2.5 meters height.”
Temri grinned and turned to Yim. “You heard him. No suicides though, and the place will be filled with cargo.”
“Flammable cargo?” asked Yim.
“Are drugs flammable?” asked Dokai.
Everyone looked at him sharply. Temri placed her face into her palms.
Yim was wide-eyed. “No, no. Did I hear that right? You want to blow up drugs? That is not a good idea. Who knows what kind of chemicals will become airborne in the process. Not to mention the poor smithy.”
Temri marched on. “The smithy will be empty. Can you make the bomb or not?”
“I can. But will I? - that is the question,” Yim said. “The presence of complex chemicals means the blast radius becomes unpredictable.”
“We shall worry about that. So, the bomb. How much and how soon?”
Yim sighed and considered the younger woman. “All the silver you have. In less than an hour.”
“That’s insane,” said Iysik. “With that much money, we could buy an army. We could live like nobles.”
Temri raised her hand to silence him. “Deal,” she said to Yim.
Iysik approached the table and placed his hands on it. “What? You will give him 350 silver for a single bomb?”
“He is the best,” Temri said.
Yim appreciated the compliment. He clasped his hands and moved towards the workshop. “You can wait here. Look after them, Bemri.”
Bemri’s ears curled. “Yes, master Yim.”
The sounds of overlapping chatter filled the kitchen. Iysik did not let himself be easily persuaded. Temri did not relent, however, and over the course of the next 15 minutes, she managed to get him to admit that Yim was, in fact, the only reliable source of explosives.
“The guard arrested everyone from Sender Street,” said Dokai. “Otherwise, we could have reached out to them.”
Temri nodded. “It is as Dokai said. Yim is our only option.”
PesKal and Makoe watched Yim work. He had brought out chemical supplies from an exceptionally well-kept closet. He produced glass vials and tubes, a small charcoal kiln, and several metallic utensils used to measure and stir.
Matrioshka wanted to join them in the virtual, but her previous actions kept her from approaching. She felt bad, but what must be done – simply must be done.
PesKal watched Yim work. He would glance towards the drawer where he hid the diamond data storage and his father’s letter. Not long after, he placed the brewed chemical into a wooden box. It was just small enough to be held by both hands. The mechanism inside would produce a high-temperature spark which would ignite the bomb. It could be set to explode as far as 30 minutes in the future.
Makoe considered PesKal; the Ankrahi was getting worried. She said, “I will replace the bomb with my nanites, don’t worry.”
PesKal looked relieved. “Please do, Officer Rue. We do not need any more death.”
Makoe smiled at him. “Worry not. We are Imperial officers. We can handle this.”
PesKal brightened, he smiled at Makoe, and flew over to follow Yim, who had just returned to the kitchen. He placed the bomb on the table with a thump, and everyone held their breath.
Yim laughed. “Easy. Kinetic energy will not start it.” He pointed to a small windup mechanism at the top. “But this will. Turn this counterclockwise to start the countdown. The maximum is 33 minutes. Pull this pin when you are sure you want the timer to arm.”
Temri clasped her hands and pushed the silver towards Yim. He peered inside and smiled.
“I might be able to pay all the wages I owed you, Bemri.”
The butler beamed. “That would be very nice, master. Might we even hire a maid or two? The estate is in dire disarray.”
“Y’all do that,” said Temri, as she instructed Iysik and Dokai to carry the bomb.
As they parted ways and walked back towards the underground, everyone was keenly aware they were in the presence of something that could kill them in a second. Makoe had placed herself into the center of the group so that if the bomb went off, she could at least scan the brains of the Miriani and potentially save them.
The group went underground, and Makoe asked, “Is there no other way to get back at the Family?”
Temri’s ears curled. “No. We hit them where it hurts. And the only thing that hurts that woman is losing money. We hit their product.”
The group made a quick stop at the cavern and used some leather and rope to cover the bomb. They put it on Dokai like a backpack, and Makoe snuck nanites into the bomb, giving her total control of its detonation. They made their way towards Tyebrook, and soon they were hiding in a small overhanging cave, looking downward into the dimly lit city. Temri pointed towards an isolated building, carved into sandy grey stone. Within it, a lone smith hammered a piece of steel.
Members of the Family went in and out of the smithy often, nodding to the smith as they went. Makoe scanned an opening into the basement from within the smithy.
Temri said, “This is the plan: Me and Makoe will disable the smith, and Makoe will pull him out. Iysik and Rui, you will help Dokai place the bomb. I will join you once I take care of the smith. Try to place the device in the center of the room.”
Everyone agreed, but Makoe tried once more: “Perhaps we could disrupt their distribution? Or their sources?”
Temri looked at her crossly. “No, Mraah. We are five, they are hundreds. That would take so much time we might as well not be doing it. This will set them back months if not more.”
Makoe did not know what else to say. She spied the onset of doubt in Temri, not of the plan, but doubt of Makoe’s intentions. She said:
“Right. Sorry, I just haven’t bombed anything before.”
Iysik smiled. “Trust me, the first time is the hardest.”
The group waited, Iysik as a lookout, until the street in front of the smithy was mostly empty. Iysik counted three Miriani underground, keeping watch over the stash. Makoe confirmed this with her scans; it would seem Iysik had very keen ears.
Everyone approached the smithy. They slipped inside through the front window as the smith was looking into the furnace. Makoe and Temri approached him from the back, while the rest made their way down the stairs.
Makoe lunged at the man and applied sufficient force to his skull to knock him unconscious. All the man could do was let out a startled yelp. Temri stared at Makoe and whispered:
“Remind me to never make you upset.”
Temri made her way down, and Makoe pulled the sleeping smith outside. She used her full nanite power then, to quickly stash the man across the street and return as soon as possible. She then spied two more Miriani approach, and recognized them from Rhea’s data. It was Uric and Memri.
The pair was walking briskly towards the stash. Uric said:
“I know, kid. But the buyer wants more. We can't pass up free money. Especially since he agreed to a premium.”
Memri looked up at the man. They were meters away from the smithy, and Makoe had just managed to slip back inside.
Memri said: “I get that. I just want a bigger cut.”
Uric laughed. “Now there’s that Rai-Bren blood I know so much about.” He tapped her on the back and stilled. His ears curled as he listened toward the smithy. Makoe made her way down expressly. Iysik had just managed to disable the last of the guards near the stash.
“Strange. Grushi is usually hard at work at this hour… Stay here.” Uric said, pulling a dagger out of its sheath and approaching the smithy.
Downstairs, the room was filled with six different types of drugs. Most were powdered, and kept in large hemp bags, and one was a crystal. Makoe analyzed its properties, as Temri placed the bomb near the crystal, turned the dial, and pulled the pin.
Makoe was just about to disable the bomb when all her senses were pulled toward her lattice atop the bell tower. She had left her lattice there, hidden in the floorboards of the tower. Now a saucer floated just above the tower. It was sleek, black, and of Imperial design. Its humming induced a reflexive reaction from Makoe; she instructed the nanites she had guarding her lattice to run. They sprang from the floor, pulling her lattice out. The saucer became bright, glowing hotter.
Matrioshka acted. She took control of Makoe’s mind and transferred it fully into her own lattice.
“What are you doing!?” asked Makoe, now inside Matrioshka’s lattice.
Her lattice was just about to jump the tower when it slammed into an invisible wall. The saucer had produced a force field in the form of a cylinder, making escape impossible. The connection to Makoe’s lattice was lost, and she and her captain appeared in the virtual. Just in time to watch the saucer complete its function.
Matrioshka recognized the device. Mostly used during terraforming to delete vast amounts of unwanted land. Its force field could be tweaked to any desired shape, and now it held the bell tower.
The Miriani in the street were in awe. They pointed toward the saucer, but quickly scattered when the bell tower shone blue. It was vaporized, alongside everything under the saucer.
The stone itself turned to gas, then to plasma, and finally into free quarks. The quarks were consumed by the saucer, which disengaged its force field and flew away swiftly.
Makoe’s lattice had been lost, but her mind was not.
Makoe gripped herself as she floated in the virtual, staring at the void where the tower once stood. Matrioshka approached and hugged her. The pink-haired girl was trembling, her partition within Matrioshka’s lattice at 100%. Her eyes widened as she yelled:
“Temri!”
Makoe regained control of her nanites. They were below the smithy still, and Temri was pulling at Makoe’s frozen body with tears crossing her face.
“Mraah!” she screamed. Iysik lay on the floor, a deep bloody hole in his chest, he would perish within the minute.
Makoe played back the events immediately.
When her nanite body froze, it failed to deactivate the bomb. And Uric had quickly made his way into the basement. He saw the three unconscious guards and laid eyes on Temri. Uric asked her:
“Temri? Is that y-”
Iysik jumped on Uric before Temri could protest. Iysik’s mind flared with pain as he drove a dagger into Uric’s shoulder. The older man twisted, and pulled the dagger out and into Iysik himself.
All breath left Iysik from the shock, he faltered and fell on the floor. Dokai yelled:
“No!” and ran towards Uric.
Uric, fighting through the headache and shock, reacted on instinct. He twisted Dokai over his shoulder and slammed the boy onto the stone ground. Dokai landed on his head, and his neck snapped; he was paralyzed from the neck down.
“By the light…” whispered Uric as he looked at the two motionless boys.
Rui was unable to speak, she looked between the two of her motionless friends and Temri. She blinked. And ran away.
Temri was grabbing at Uric. She managed to push him into the wall and knock over the single torch that lit the space. It fell on the ground, and rolled into a bag of dried plants.
The plants were light, filled with air, sugar, and carbon – prime for combustion. The entire stack of bags took to the flame. The air in the room became heavy. One of the guards managed to wrestle free from his restraints and lunge for Temri.
Uric stopped him, but the two only managed to stab each other. The blood sprayed across Temri, who took a step back and saw Makoe’s frozen body. She must have thought it was due to fear because she approached and grabbed Makoe’s shoulders.
The fires spread, and Makoe finally returned to the present.
Uric and the guard were staring at one another in shock, as they fell to the ground.
Makoe’s lattice was at full capacity, her body trembling. Matrioshka appeared in the virtual. She looked at the fire, and the burning bomb. It would detonate within four seconds. The resulting temperature would be enough to catalyse the crystals, which were ten-fold more potent than the bomb.
The resulting explosion would yield 83,680 megajoules of energy. Nobody within 30 meters of the blast would survive.
Three seconds.
Matrioshka told Makoe:
“Scan her brain. And give me the rest of the scanners.”
Makoe’s eyes, full of tears, grabbed Temri firmly. The Miriani girl was wide-eyed. She looked at Makoe as the scanner breached Makoe’s forehead. It was a small sphere, but it shone white as it scanned the entire structure of Temri’s brain.
Temri was mesmerized; she didn’t even notice the strings of nanites controlled by Matrioshka, flying out of Makoe’s body and towards the remaining Miriani in the room.
Matrioshka scanned the two still unconscious guards. She scanned Uric, whose heart had already stopped, and the guard in his deathly embrace. She scanned Iysik, just as a final tear fell from his face. And she scanned Dokai, who could only blink in fear, as he lay face down, paralyzed.
Two seconds.
The scanner’s light shone, reflecting in Temri’s eyes as she asked: “What is that, Mraah?”
The scan finished, and a copy of Temri’s mind was transferred to Matrioshka’s lattice.
The room detonated, killing all inside.