{Enki}

“T.a.o., once Remorse and Bol join the battle, I want you to find somewhere safe. Worry about yourself before anyone else. Tell me you understand.”

Razor knew better. There was something angelic about Seamswalkers. Perhaps it was their access to so many worlds and so many peoples—an overexposure to life—which left them atypically compassionate.

The Afflicted One answered him on her private frequency. “There is no mistaking your heart in the warning. I will miss you, friend.”

There.

Such an open kindness. It left Razor overcome. He said, “Not as much as I have you these last few years. I am happy for your freedom, but do not waste it saving some hug-happy Shadow cultist. Heed me, little sister.”

She hesitated before asking, “What about the Silence in our Stars? Mother wants Ishkur.”

No doubt. When Razor opened the conduit to Ishkur, all of those Imminent had witnessed the fractured glass of their reality, the likes of which the Matrix couldn’t fathom.

Not since Elden drank Razor’s blood had an event opened so many Probabilities. And Elden’s attack was an unexpected miscalculation still costing Razor seven million years later. Fucking Progeny…

Except for the Seamswalkers, of course.

Razor said, “Let Silence and the Shadow contend with one another. All that matters is Echo’s safety. I entrusted her to Sagan, and I still believe I made the right decision.”

“Agreed. A breeze of fresh air over your desolate bone yard. Over and Out.”

T.a.o. left the Pain Curator to his thoughts. That’s all he was now. Thoughts and circuits and light. No corporeal body to speak of. For now, entertaining himself with his three-dimensional renderings would suffice, but if Razor expected to live long term as a Dyson’s Sphere, he’d require a mechanized form. Perhaps the Dwarves of Pil would have some ideas.

Of course, none of it mattered. This existence was temporary. In an hour, Gait would plow into the hull and take Enki out. Or some time after, Rayne would explode. The Weapon army was no longer a secret. There was no way in the Wrong Side of Eternity that the Shadow would leave Enki intact with the depositories stationed on every continent but Torrentus.

Rayne.

Nox.

If Razor still possessed a head, he would’ve shaken it in bewilderment. What a fascinating discovery—One Rayne was keeping from those she held dear. Within the first three minutes of realizing her nacre trick, Razor envisioned two million, three hundred and eight thousand ways to capitalize on it. He could groan at the wasted potential if only he had a throat.

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Fuck it.

The Pain Curator had lost enough to mourn today without grieving imaginary losses.

Triss.

Razor wanted to laugh bitterly because, even without a physical heart, his still felt broken. No one would ever place their faith in his hands like Triss did. The perfect trust which came from knowing and understanding him completely. All of it—Gone.

Maybe they weren’t the Eternal Bind after all, but Razor would make sure history remembered them.

The Pain Curator manifested his projection beside Sagan, who sat cross-legged on the gangway furthest from Ishkur’s conduit. She was snacking on a nutrition ration. He appeared sitting beside her. “A Dyson’s Sphere is a great place for a little girl to grow up.”

Sagan startled and dropped the ration.

He made to catch it, but it fell through the light of his hands into the swirl of Cascading Light below. “Oops.” Razor tapped his cane on the gangway for emphasis. “Apologies, Seamswalker. Still skittish, as always?”

‘Pain Kitten’ still suited her.

Sagan blinked, processing his first words. “You mean raise Echo in Ishkur?”

“I do. I think all of you—the entire Shadow—could be quite happy there. The King of Earth and Cinder included.”

Razor let her sit with the idea for a minute, both of them in an unexpectedly companionable silence. They watched on as Tameka stood before the conduit with her wings out and accessed the astonishing ability within her. Razor saw it in the Atramentous of her eyes, concentrating and transferring energy from one star to another.

It wasn’t flashy. There were no lightning bolts or streams of energy, but the woman trembled with the enormity of it until a black color swallowed the solid green of her eyes.

Xelan observed Tameka from close by. He was the first to notice Razor in the room, after that inquisitive mind of his had made a sweep of his surroundings. The half-Icarus possessed so many endearing foibles.

Including that dorky wave.

Razor suggested to Sagan, “Keep thinking on it,” before appearing beside Xelan. “Yes?”

Korac noticed him then, and his cool exterior bristled ever so slightly, much to Razor’s amusement.

Xelan saw the friction and ignored it for a more productive subject, eye on the bigger picture. “So Torrentus malfunctioning wasn’t an accident. It was intentional to secure the bridge and prevent anyone from accessing Ishkur. But who drained the storm of its nacre energy?”

Sharp. Razor liked him so very much. “Our father. After…” He held up his hand, letting his empty nail beds finish the sentence. “The Tritans arrived, and the Exalted learned of my friendship with Remorse—”

“Friendship?!” Korac scoffed.

Razor placed both hands on his cane and leaned on it. After a curious examination of his relationship with Remorse, he confessed, “No. You’re right. It was more like a surrogacy. Primary Rem treated me like a son, and he was more of a father to me than Zero could ever claim to be.”

Lifting his head from the terminal, Tumu asked, “Iuo, how many children did Remorse father or surrogate according to your records?”

“Eight hundred and ninety-two.”

Semantics couldn’t change the long walks and talks with the Primary, but something was wrong…

Remorse stole Pax.

Razor said, “Those were numbers—Seedings for the breeding program. None of them were special interest cases—”

“What about my children?” Pehton’s orange gliders flared along her forearms, matching the anger in her voice. “Experiments, right? And you knew. Knew how he treated his children. My children.”

“And me?”

Xelan.

He was a special case, but…

Remorse stole Pax.

Why?

Why did it upset Razor so?

He met Korac’s measuring stare from across the room. The Atheneum said, “Let’s face it. I’m the only family you have left.”

Tameka called out, “Hey, team?”

They all looked through the conduit to see Ishkur’s bridge illuminated in an uninterrupted continuation of Enki’s helm.

Razor muttered, “Let there be light.”

It was working.