Kyle didn’t like this. Especially not after Razor had flirted with Silence. It was enough to make Kyle’s skin crawl. However, the upside was subjecting Razor—the Pain Curator—to all his worst crimes in the secured facilities under Story Taker’s command.
Finally.
Justice for Bethany.
Kyle’s baby sister was so adamant about hunting baddies with the Annihilation Squad she might even volunteer her experiences for Razor to endure. And wouldn’t that be poetic?
After the bastard gave what could only mean ‘yes’ as an answer, Kyle brought the crew back into the research lab.
Lucas hummed with anxious energy. “I’ll need to leave for Thailea and collect the ore tonight.”
Andrew suffered momentary disappointment, but he sucked it up like a champ. “What do you need from me?”
Not gonna lie. Kyle was straight, but he saw the appeal whenever Lucas smiled. The handsome S.O.B. took Andrew by the face and kissed him before gripping Andrew tight. Mid-hug, Lucas said, “Thank you.” He peered over at Kyle and Silence, saying, “Thank you, all.”
Kyle held up a hand. “Hold it, Mr. Imperial Tailor. This won’t be a walk in the park. I agreed to surprise Xelan, but resurrecting Razor and Triss should take some serious consideration.”
Silence asked, “What are you suggesting?”
“The rehab facility is guarded with nacre-deterring shields. If you restore Razor with an Aegis body, those shields won’t mean shit. So how do we confine him?”
Silence hooked her arm around Kyle’s elbow and beamed at him. “I’m sure you’ll find a way. You’re very creative.” The look she gave him had nothing to do with rehab security.
A silly smile slapped itself on Kyle’s face as he gazed into her steely eyes. Only Andrew’s snickering snapped him out of it.
“Hey. You’re trying to manipulate me.” There was no hurt in Kyle’s voice because… “You’re right. I’ll think of something.” He turned to Lucas. “Go get your ore. Andrew, we’ll need clothes for Razor. I won’t have him walking around here buck naked scaring the locals. Silence, you know what to do.”
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Andrew kissed Lucas before running out of the lab, presumably to Lucas’ two bedroom-sized closet in the zeppelin.
The soon to be second to last Aegis called, “T.a.o.?”
Kyle didn’t startle when the first Seamswalker appeared. T.a.o. was always listening. With her eyes locked into violet Atramentous, the elven woman beamed at Lucas. “My friend?”
He took her by the shoulders, smiling as he said, “Yes. Would you like to help me free him?”
One very emphatic nod later, and those two were off to Thailea.
Silence retrieved Razor’s nacre from its case and held his entire existence in her palm. She sensed Kyle staring and peered at him.
“I trust you to contain him while I’m working.” Kyle meant it.
True to her namesake, Silence bowed with her head, wordlessly accepting her assignment. Before Kyle did something ridiculous like kiss her—that would certainly lead to more—he left the lab. Memory research was the domain of him and his sisters, so Xelan had connected it to the rehab facility via a terminal of vital conduits.
Fancy prison.
Karma in a nacre citadel.
Call it what you liked. This was the most secured institution outside of the imperial stronghold. And it was Kyle’s sandbox. He’d designed every facet of it to reintegrate these offenders back into society, but only after Kyle was finished with them.
Nacre-deterring shields kept nacre-bearers inside, but Razor was an Aegis. No nacre to deter. So how…
Shit.
Kyle hated asking this question, but it helped in situations like this.
What would Xelan do?
Wingmaster would probably trust Razor on his own merit. The honor system.
Fuck that.
Gripping his hair, Kyle walked through a conduit into the facility’s foyer. All diorite and glass, matte black iron rails and decor—The usual modern shit the Icari liked so much. He took the glass Aegis lift to the twentieth floor and entered his office with a DNA scan.
Kyle wasn’t much of a decorator, so Silence had kitted the place out for him. Naturally, both couches would easily fit them together. The desk was likewise massive and empty, ready to go at a moment’s notice. The glass wall behind the desk looked out onto what Kyle referred to as ‘the floor.’ It was where the pods stretched out and out, across an expanse vast enough to play professional football. From here, Kyle watched Nox soften up the reformists. And soon Razor among them.
With a wave of Kyle’s hand, an image projected in the center of his office. It was a three-dimensional, interactive rendering of the facility. Where would he put Razor, and how could he confine him there?
At least with the Probability Matrix closed, the bastard couldn’t summon Inanis. No Probabilities; no soldiers to recruit. It was enough to make Kyle smirk. Each apartment contained basic needs: bedroom, bathroom, kitchen, recreational space, and one window looking out onto the ocean. Everything was fortified with nacre-deterring technology.
Originally, Kyle had asked for nacre glass, but there were two problems with that. One, there wasn’t enough of the stuff in the galaxy with all the Aegis being dead. And two, Smith had encased the Aegis tombs in gold to prevent raiding. It was a nice touch. One of which Lucas obviously knew how to bypass, but it all left Kyle with fewer options than he’d like for his prison’s construction.
Maybe the answer wasn’t in the prison.
Maybe the answer was in the nacre itself.
Yeah.
Kyle had an idea.