Editing Eternity (Warhammer High) (section)

=== Recuperation ===


Jake stirred.  The breeze across his face brought him about.  He licked dry lips and tried to rise, until a lancing pain from his shoulders brought him down.  He groaned through his teeth.  “Oh…not moving for a while,” he muttered.

He glanced to the side, noting the small fan that was providing the breeze.  A shifting weight on his other side pulled his attention away from the oscillating fan to the familiar sight of his wife, dressed in a thick tank top, fast asleep.  “Venus?” he asked.

Her eyes snapped open.  He winced at the light.  “Jake…you’re awake!” she said.  She leaned over to him, eyes sparkling.  “How do you feel?”

“Everywhere hurts, baby,” Jake admitted.  “How long was I out?”

“Well over a day,” Venus whispered.  “It’s 0200 Tuesday.”

“Did I wake you?” Jake asked.

Venus smiled, her shoulders shifting as if she was letting something go.  “See, you’re the best.  You just had life-altering surgery and you want to make sure I’m okay.”

Jake returned the smile, feeling her warmth brush his lips as she slid her eyes shut and kissed him.  “I don’t feel different.”  He sank into the pillow.  “In a few days, we’ll find out how it worked.”

“Until then, relax.”  Venus slid her hand down his chest, leaving a trail of her heat down his bare skin.  “The Royal Estate can wait a while until you heal properly.”

“All right.”

“You should have heard the laundry list of restrictions the doctor had,” Venus said.  “You’re basically confined to bed for a few days.”

“Yeah?  What did he say?” Jake tiredly asked.

“‘Water only, no food, no sex, no exercise, no direct sunlight, no loud noises, no chemical exposure.  No Warp travel, no trips to Nocturne for a bit,’” Venus quoted from her eidetic memory.

“Whaaaat?  Vastly increased stamina and I can’t have sex with you for a week?” Jake groused.

Venus slapped a hand over her face in frustration.  “Listen, stud, you’ve got enough on your plate.  We’ve got infinite time to get back to the grind, you get some sleep.”

“Hmph.  I suppose it’s doctor’s orders.”  Jake tried to move his arm, and he couldn’t.  He whimpered through his teeth as his nerves flared with pain.  “Can you help?  My arm is asleep.”

Venus obligingly lifted his arm and set it down at a more natural angle, gently massaging the aching muscle with her hands.  He sighed as the heat from her flesh melted into his, and she coaxed circulation into his arm after a day of disuse.  “Thanks, baby.”

She leaned over and rested her finger on his lips.  “Now…rest.  I’ll be here when you wake up, don’t you fear,” she whispered.  Her eyes dimmed as she relaxed back into the bed, letting go of his arm.

“Good night, baby.”  Jake settled back into the soft sheets.  “Now, just to confirm…no chemical exposure?”

“Go to sleep, Jake,” Venus said flatly, concealing her relieved grin in the darkness.

Sandra sat in the chair at Jake’s bedside a few days later, feeling some of her worries melt away.  “Are you sure you’re all right, Jake?” she asked again.

Jake grinned, sitting up in the bed.  “Mom, I’ll be fine by this time tomorrow.  I don’t even feel different yet.”

“So did it not work?” George asked.

“I dunno.  Give it a few more weeks.  According to the doctor, if it did work perfectly, the only thing that will change visibly is that the atrophied muscles in my arms and legs will start healing on their own,” Jake explained.  “And if it didn’t, then my eyes will start changing color, then the thing with my arms.”

“And…if it failed, and the thing we talked about at the party happens?” Sandra pressed.

“That would have been obvious to the doctor when I talked to him yesterday, he had a blood screener with him,” Jake said.  “I’ll be fine.”

George shook his head.  “Well…all right.  You come see us when you can, all right?”

“Absolutely,” Jake assured them.  He grinned up at his parents.  “Thanks for swinging by.  You two want to stay for dinner?  It’s my first solid meal since the operation.”

Sandra hesitated before answering, looking up at George.  “Sure, that’d be nice.”

“Great.”  Jake gingerly edged out of the bed, glad he had bothered to put on running shorts.  His back audibly popped as he stood.  “You guys ever had Venus’ cooking?  I don’t know where she found time to learn at school, we were always so busy,” he said, steering them out of the bedroom.


That Thursday morning, Jake stared at his reflection in the mirror.  His eyes were changing.  The rippled dark greens were fading into a uniform red.  His hair and skin were the same, but there was no mistaking it: his eyes were transforming.

He slowly reached a finger up to the mirror, brushing some drops of condensate aside.  He brought his face up to the glass, staring straight into his own gaze.  The red was bleeding out from the retina into the iris.  The cornea and iris weren’t changing, yet, but the whorls of green pigment were vanishing into a bright, brilliant red.

“’Morning, Jake,” Venus said cheerfully, walking in front of the entrance to the bathroom.  She had had to leave early for a meeting with the Chancellor.  As she crossed the door, she paused, taking in his pose.  “You all right, baby?”

Jake silently beckoned her over.  She stood by his side, looking in confusion as he held his nose to the glass.  “Venus, go get your mirror glasses, all right?” he asked.  His voice was cut with urgency.

Venus blinked in surprise, but did as she was told.  She brought the glasses to him and slid them onto her face.

Jake straightened up and gently squeezed her shoulders, holding her still.  He brought his eyes up to her own, and he could see the little ovals of fire widen behind the mirrored lenses.

“Oh!  Your eyes…they’re shifting!” she said in surprise.  “Wow…well, how do you feel?”

“I can’t feel a thing,” Jake admitted.  His voice was hollow.  “But…well.”

“You wanted to keep your mother’s eyes,” Venus said in sympathy.  “Well, we took those pictures before the operation, you can have your eyes surgically altered to look like your old ones again.”

Jake turned back to the mirror, staring at his reflection.  “Let’s see what else changes,” he whispered.

Alpharia set the bowl of chips down on the table in her modest house, looking at the well-worn leather case on the table.  “Hey, more money for me!” 

“Dream on,” Freya snorted.  She ran her hands over the case, remembering when she had bought it.  “Man, we broke that thing in fast,” she muttered.  “Several nights a week for the rest of the summer.”

Jake sat down next to her, grinning up at her from behind his sunglasses.  “I hope you’ve been practicing.”

“Bah, I don’t need practice,” she scoffed.  She smiled happily at the pile of clay chips Jake was pulling out of the box.  “I’m glad you were up to this.”

Jake nodded emphatically.  “Me too!”  He saw Nate and Remilia wander in, completing the assembly.

Nate immediately dropped a large bag of something tasty-smelling on the table.  “Hey, all, hope everyone’s hungry.”

“Always,” Remilia said.  She looked over at where Jake and Venus were sitting.  “So…don’t keep us in suspense, you two.  How did it go?” she asked.

Jake looked sideways at Venus, arcing an eyebrow over his sunglasses, which he had retained only to heighten the mood.  “Well…” he drawled laconically, pulling them off.  “You know how these things go.”

Freya actually gasped.  The others made similar, more muted sounds of surprise.  Jake’s irises were now constantly-moving circles of red.  They both looked like currents of glowing paint, swirling around his pupils.  They weren’t glowing with actual light, but the effect was still profound.

“Holy shit,” Nate murmured.  “All mine did were change color.”

“Yeah, this was something of a surprise,” Jake admitted.  He smiled.  “Looks rad, though.  This happened in less than two days,” he said, gesturing at his face.

“So does this mean more will happen?”

“If it continues, you bet,” Jake said.  He grabbed a steaming sandwich from the bag.  “At this rate, I’ll look like Vulkan in under a month.”

Alpharia gaped.  “Are you serious?” she demanded.

“No, all I’m due for is a slight change in skin tone, now,” Jake said.  “I was just poking fun.”

Freya let out a breath.  “Well…that’s going to take some getting used to.”  She leaned over him, staring intently.  “Did it hurt?”

“Not at all.”  Jake shrugged.  “Do I look different any other way?”

“…No, but you do have a different…sense, I guess,” Freya said.

“Do I smell or sound different yet?” he asked.

“Yeah, just a little.”  She narrowed her eyes, staring into his.  “It’s actually kinda fun to watch,” she said.

“Well, the only other thing I’ve noticed is increased heat resistance,” Jake said.  “I accidentally set my hand on a handle for a cast-iron skillet that had been over an element for fifteen minutes and it barely felt uncomfortable.”  He opened his hand.  It was unmarked.  “I mean, I still can’t handle heat like Venus can, but I seriously felt almost nothing.”

“Are the rest of your senses dulling?” Remilia asked.

“Not at all.”  Jake sat back in his seat and grabbed a pack of cards from the chip set.  “Honestly, I feel great.”

“Good,” Nate said.  His eyes flashed for a moment.  “You mind?”  At Jake’s shrug, he ran his own mind over the contours of Jake’s.  “Huh.  Basically the same.”

“Well, if it’s gonna change, it’ll be over the next few weeks.”  Jake cut the cards.  “I sort of prepared for this.  It’s a small price to pay.”

“What do your parents think?  I know they were both dreading this,” Nate said.

“I haven’t seen them since it started.”  Jake anted up.  “Who’s in?”

Nearly one full month after the operation, Jake sat at the dinner table in his parents’ new apartment, talking to his family, and trying not to weird them out overmuch.  Mizuki was balanced in his lap, staring up at her cousin in amazement that stood in stark contrast to her parents’ mixture of disgust and shock.  “Did it hurt at all?” she asked.

“The surgery?  A lot.  The changes?  Not at all,” Jake said.  He smiled down at the little girl in his lap.  “Want to see?”

“Yes!” she said, scooting up to look into his eyes.  Jake relaxed and opened his eyes as wide as he could, and Mizuki stared into them, entranced.  “THAT’S SO COOL!” she squealed.

Jake grinned broadly.  “Sure is.”  He looked up at Alice and Hajime, who were looked far less enthused.  “Right, guys?” he asked pointedly.

“It’s certainly different,” Hajime murmured.  He looked at the tan Jake was sporting as his skin darkened.  “Do you know how much more you’ll change?”

“Yep, this is about it, physically,” Jake said.  He hefted his free hand and held it open.  His cuticles, tongue, eyelids, all of his skin had darkened.  Where before he had been so pale that one could follow the veins under his skin, now he looked like a Tallarn.  “Mentally, the changes will be so slow and subtle that I won’t even notice.  So…this is the new me.”  He grinned down at his cousin in his lap.  “So, what do you think?  Am I still Jake?”

“I think so,” Mizuki decided.

“You do?  That’s a relief,” Jake confessed.  “I wouldn’t want to creep you out.”

“I think your skin’s too dark, though, you look like you fell asleep in a tanning bed like that one time,” Mizuki said.

“Hey, that wasn’t even me!” Jake protested.  “That was totally in a movie.”  He gestured over to where Venus was sitting, chatting with Sandra about something.  “You don’t think Venus is too dark,” he pointed out.

“Yeah, but she always looks like that,” Mizuki pointed out.  “I’m not used to you looking like this.”

Jake gently let her down to the floor.  “Well, it’s permanent.  I suspect you’ll get used to it,” he said.

Mizuki’s hand lingered on his.  “Are you sure you’re all right?  Your hand is really warm.  It’s like you have a fever.”

“Thanks, but I’m fine.”  Jake pulled his hand back, smiling to reassure her.  “This is just how my skin feels now.”

“It’s hot.”

“Not as much as Venus’.  Is it too hot?  Does it hurt to touch?” he asked.

“No, it’s just hot,” she said.  She looked up at him again.  “So do you feel different?”

Jake shrugged.  “Actually…not really.  I mean, I’m a little bit stronger and faster, but I can’t even notice it.  Seriously, I forget it happened if I’m just sitting around doing something that needs focus.  Then I pass by a mirror and ‘Oh yeah, that thing that happened.’”

George finally spoke up.  “At least your facial structure didn’t change, right?”

“Nope, still mine,” Jake said, rubbing his chin.  His facial hair was a little bit darker, but not as much as his scalp hair.  Where his tight curls had been light brown, now they were a deep brown.  “So…what’s the verdict?” he asked of the room.

His parents had spoken of it before, of course, and even seen it in person, but the others hadn’t.  Walter shrugged.  “Man, George is right.  This is going to take some getting used to.  Still, it looks natural.  I don’t know if I prefer it,” he said.

“Hmm.”  Jake sighed.  “Well.  We’ll have time.  Now, I talked it over with your parents, Mizuki, and we’ve decided that this is as good a time as any to visit the surface.”

“REALLY?!” she gasped, overjoyed.

“Sure.  Do you still want to go?” he asked.

“Yes!  Where are we going?” she eagerly asked, as her parents stood.

“You get to pick!” Venus announced.

Mizuki’s little face screwed up in sudden concentration.  “But I don’t know any places up there!  What do I get to pick from?”

“Well, do you want to go to someplace public, or private?” Venus asked.

“Public!  I want to meet people,” Mizuki declared.

“Okay…do you want to go outside or see the buildings?” Venus continued.

“I want to see what the place you and Jake went to school at looks like,” Mizuki said as a thought occurred to her.

“Sure,” Venus said.  “It’s called ‘Imperator High.’  It’s called that because it was founded on the last day of the Crusade,” she added.  The group slowly made their way out to the cars, handling the questions that Mizuki was eagerly posing, until they fell into formation in the skylanes and took off.

En route, Jake noted Venus discreetly tapping a few commands in her vox.  “What are you up to?” he asked.

“Making sure of something,” she enigmatically replied.  Jake cocked a brow, but kept his questions stowed.  Let her be mysterious.


Mizuki tucked Venus’ sunglasses over her eyes and stared up at the sky with her mouth wide open.  “WOW!  It’s so BRIGHT!”

“It’s actually pretty cloudy today, if you can believe that,” Jake said.  He smiled down at the girl who was having her mind so thoroughly blown, remembering when he had had the same experience.  “It’s gorgeous, isn’t it?”

“It’s HUGE!  It feels like I’m falling!” Mizuki said.  “And it’s so quiet up here too!”

“It feels that way, but people can hear just fine up here,” Jake said.  Walter, who had likewise never been out of the hives, was trying not to look impressed, and failing completely, if somewhat less overtly than his niece.  Hajime and Alice were looking around in wonder, too, though they had both been topside before.  George and Sandra, of course, had seen it many times, and Eric had seen more than his fair share of jungle combat, and found the display entirely unremarkable.

The old soldier had been quiet the entire time, however, only fielding the rarest of questions that Venus and Jake couldn’t answer.  At length, however, he spoke up as the group approached the school.  “Jake, do you ever think about living in the hives again?”

“All the time,” Jake said, surprising his parents.  “Nobody knows their neighbors up here.  It’s so expensive.  There’s stuff I miss a lot.”  He turned to smile at Venus.  “But we built a house up here.  I wouldn’t walk away from that.”

“Hmm.”  Eric looked up at the huge school building, which was an eclectic mix of gothic and pragmatic design that towered over the surrounding manors.  “Hell of a building,” he muttered.  “Looks like the Munitorum office I worked in back on Maractane.”

“I bet Rogal Dorn designed both,” Venus piped up.

“No, this place was built when he was still stationed on the same planet as me, at the end of the Crusade, before he moved back to Inwit.”  Eric shook his head.  “It’s still amazing.”

“It is.”  Venus walked up to the door and acknowledged the guard’s salute with a nod.  “Afternoon, Private.”

“My Lady Venus, Lord Jacob, welcome back,” the aging guard said.  “What can we do for you?”

“Is she in?” Venus asked.

“She is indeed, my Lady.  Shall I page her?  She may be in a conference.”

“Oh, I just won’t bother her,” Venus said.  “Thanks.

Jake led the group into the building, pointing out a few details that had changed since he left.  “Those doors there are where guests had to go to sign in.  It was a zoo.  So many students had mercenary guard details or something, and they were never allowed inside, so they had to just wait.”  Jake chuckled.  “So stupid.  There was never any violence here.  Well, armed violence.”

“That was the entrance to the assembly hall,” Venus said.  She propped the door open an inch and saw a small group of students doing something on the stage.  “Looks like we can’t go in, though.”

“My stars!  Venus!  Is that you?” a voice from ahead of them asked.  The group turned to see a graying man in a rumpled-looking tweed vest gaping at her.

“Wow, Professor Blenkach!  Been a hell of a long time!” she said, happily shaking his hand.

“It has!  Look at you!” he said, holding her at arm’s length.  Even in her modest denim jacket, she cut a beautiful figure.  “You look amazing, Venus.  It’s great to see you after all this time!”

“It’s good to see you, too, Professor, but what are you doing here after school let out?” Venus asked as Jake walked up behind them.

“Oh, just paperwork,” he scoffed.  “I swear, I did less in the Munitorum.”

“Hey, Professor,” Jake said.

Blenkach turned.  “Uh, hello,” he said.  His mind raced as he tried to put a name to the face. “Oh!  Jacob!  Wow, I almost didn’t recognize you.  How are you?”

“Just fine, Adam, thanks.”  Jake gestured at the group.  “My parents, grandfather, cousin, aunt, and uncles.  We’re just here to see the old stomping grounds.”

“I see.  Well, that…oh,” Blenkach started as he saw the matching Nocturnean rings on their hands.  “So you two stayed an item, then?” he asked slyly.  “Good on you both.”

“We did.”  Venus smiled.  “He’s the Bond Prince of Nocturne now, in fact.”

Blenkach stared at them both for a moment.  “Well…quite a promotion,” he said at last.  “Congratulations to you both.”

“Thanks, Professor,” Venus said for the two of them.

“I’d love to talk, but I need to hand these in to Headmaster Sebastian,” Blenkach sighed, straightening the papers in his hands.  “Do drop by again.”

Jake grinned.  “We just might.  So long, Professor.”

As Blenkach walked off, Jake and Venus shared a wry grin.  “Hmm.  Seems he got the anti-aging procedure too, because I swear he hasn’t aged a day,” Jake noted.

“Hee hee, feisty old coot.”  Venus looked back at the others.  “My old history professor.  Former political officer from the 194th Army Group.”

“He always thought I was going to join the Army for some reason,” Jake noted.  “Can’t imagine why.”

“Is it true you’ve got former Astartes on staff here?” Mizuki asked, wide-eyed.

“Faculty, not staff.  And yes.  A few.”  Venus looked around her.  “In fact…this way,” she said, leading them down one of the halls on the floor.  “Let’s see if she’s even in her office…”  They walked down a hallway, marveling at the trophies in the racks and display cases on the walls.

“What are all these for?” Mizuki asked.

“Well,” Venus said, pausing alongside one.  “This one is mine,” she said.  She pointed at the name and date on the bottom.  “I was in that team.  ‘Girls’ Team Relay Swimming,’” she read off the label.  She smiled as the memories came back.  “Good times.”

“Wow.  You have a pool up here?” Mizuki asked.

“A big one.  I can show you later,” Venus said.  She pushed open a door at the end of the long hallway as they reached it.  “In the meantime…”

Faith looked up from the student she was speaking to and started as she saw her cousin walk in.  Venus saw that she was busy and backed out with a wink.  “She’s busy, we can come back,” Venus said.

“No, no, come in!” Faith called.  She turned to smile at the nervous-looking boy in front of her.  “You let me know when you’re finished, all right?  Your group needs that.”

“I will, Miss Aurelian,” the boy said, picking up his bag.  “Thanks for your help.”

“No problem.  See you next class,” Faith said, watching him go.  “Venus, come on in.  How are you?”

“I’m doing well, Faith, how about you?” Venus asked.

Faith walked over to the group.  “I’m great.  This job is incredibly rewarding.  Who knew I was good with kids?” she asked.

Jake extended a hand to her.  “Hey, Faith.”

Faith paused, looking at him with naked astonishment.  “…Jake?”

Jake nodded.  “It’s me.  I got a paint job, but…”

“Jake!  Wow, look at you!” Faith said.  “Congratulations!”

“Thanks,” he said, finally shaking her hand.  “Oh, my parents, George and Sandra Seager, and grandfather Eric Donnelly.  My Uncle Hajime and Aunt Alice, and their daughter Mizuki, and my Uncle Wallace.”  He gestured to them all in turn as Faith shook hands and smiled.  “And this is my sister-in-law, Professor and Lady Primarch Faith Aurelian.”

“Well, not yet, until I finish my thesis and get the actual piece of paper,” Faith admitted with a warm grin.  “So, for now at least, it’s just Faith, please.”

Mizuki boggled.  “Wow.  You’re a teacher here?” she asked.

Hajime grabbed her shoulder to silence her, but Faith was nodding.  “Yep.  Ninth grade biology.”  She saw the gesture and waved it away.  “Believe me, it’s nothing I didn’t get from the students here.  Or the faculty!  They were so confused.  ‘You…want to…teach?’” she mimed the headmaster’s shock.

“Don’t let us interrupt, Faith,” Venus said.  Faith shook her concerns off.

“No, I’m pretty much done for the day.  What are you all doing here, anyway?” she asked.

“Well, we wanted to bring Mizuki up to see the surface for the first time,” Jake said, smiling fondly at his cousin.

Faith smiled and stepped back slightly.  “And how do you think it is, Mizuki?”

“Big.  Really big.  And everything’s so bright,” she said, clearly a little overwhelmed by everything.

Faith noticed.  “Well, you have fun up here.  I need to go get back to work on the papers,” Faith sighed.  “Grading.  It never ends.”

“How’s your own paper coming along?” Jake asked.

Faith snorted.  “Slowly.  I should have picked something with fewer interviews.”

“Hmm.  Well, good luck.”  Venus and company filed out as Faith grabbed her jacket from the back of her chair.  She caught Jake’s eye as he moved to follow.

“Hey, Jake.  How did it go?” she asked.

“Well enough that the pain is long gone, but the doctor says I’ll look like this for the rest of time,” Jake said quietly.  He held his hand before his face.  “I don’t quite know how to feel.”

Faith watched as he ran his hands together.  “I think you’ll adapt.  Give it a few decades and you won’t even remember being a different color.”

“I hope I do.  I wouldn’t want to forget.”  He turned his alien eyes on her, wondering what to say.  “I’m still me, though.”

“I can tell.”  Faith slid her jacket on and gave him a quick hug.  “Hang in there.  It’ll be alright.”


Outside, Venus was showing them another of the trophies in the hall.  When Jake and Faith emerged, she paused.  “Hey.  I was thinking we show them our terrible secret,” Venus said.

“We have a terrible secret?” Jake asked.

“Yes.  You know, the study hall.”

Jake rolled his eyes.  “Sure, why not.”  As Venus took off down the hall, Jake turned to explain.  “You guys will love this.”

“What are you two even talking about?” Eric asked.

Jake smiled.  “The room where we met.  Originally, it served a much darker function in my mind.”

George winced.  “Oh, I remember that.  You were just…ugh.”

“Yeah, that was bad.”  Jake paused outside the study hall on the first floor, looking into the rows of students serving detentions, waiting for late busses, or just hanging out.  “Right…there, at that table.  That was where Farah introduced us,” Jake said, pointing.

“It was,” Venus said.  She walked up next to him, leaning her head on his shoulder for a moment.  “A good call on her part, I think,” she said quietly.

Walter let them have their moment before asking the obvious question.  “So…what was its darker function?”

“Oh, yeah,” Jake said, stepping back from the door.  “I got dumped by her cousin at that same table.”

“You came home a complete mess,” George said in sympathy.

Jake sighed.  “How Hana and I stayed friends after that, I’ll never know.”

“You stayed friends because she wanted someone to boss around, and lead about by the…hand,” Venus said, mindful of the presence of little Mizuki.

“So true.  She grew out of it, though.”  Jake let his eyes travel the familiar rows of seats and benches, remembering.  “How does it feel like so long ago when it wasn’t even a decade?”

“It was a very busy decade,” Venus chuckled.

Someone in the room recognized her and gasped.  Before anyone could do anything, she took a long step back out of the doorframe and into the hall.  “Welp, that’s our cue.  Mizuki, do you want to stay here or go somewhere else?” she asked.

“I want to see the pool,” Mizuki said.

Venus nodded.  “Ah, my old lair.  That was my lair,” she said.  “My room, my cave, my haunt.”  She led the group through the empty halls to the gym area, pausing at the door.  “Oh…it’s Friday.  Blast.  Races today,” she said.  She thought for a moment.  “Eh.  It’s public,” she said.  She pushed the door open and walked in.

The smell of chlorine assaulted the group’s senses, bringing a wistful grin to Venus’ face.  “Wow.  What a time trip,” she said.  She looked out over the pool from the spectator area in which they found themselves.  She retrieved her sunglasses and slid them on so she didn’t distract the racers.

“Hey, Jake, remember the time I was in a Sectionals race and I could barely walk from that leg cramp?” she chuckled.

“Oh, that was a disaster.  You came in second place instead of first,” Jake joked.

“Hey, I was sad,” Venus huffed.

“Now, this, more than anything, takes me back,” Sandra said.  “I remember the ONE time Vulkan showed up to watch a race and nobody got anything done until he left because his security guards were scaring everyone.”

Venus groaned.  “Oh man, we were both so embarrassed…”

“Can we go in?” Mizuki asked.

Hajime squeezed her hand.  “No, honey, they’re having races today,” he said.  “Venus, is the pool open other days?”

“All the time, they let anyone come in,” she said.

“Maybe we can come back on a weekend,” Hajime said to his daughter.

“Not here, Hajime, trust me,” Jake said.  “You’ll want to go to one of the public pools in the city proper.  They don’t like hivers much around here,” he added, his voice frosting over.

“Ooh, the thing in the…yeah,” Venus said, halting before she could get too personal.  “Well, that’s it…unless you want to show something, Jake?” she asked.

“No, I want to go to the overlook now,” Jake said.  He tapped his pocket with a loaded look.

Venus took the hint.  “One last stop then, you guys,” she said.  She turned to Mizuki and grinned behind her shades.  “Trust me, we saved the best for last.”

Cora lifted her vox and smiled when she saw the caller ID.  “Hello?”

“Cora!  It’s Venus.  How are you?” Venus asked.

“Great!  I got the contract,” Cora proclaimed.

“Oh, awesome.  Did you get both distributors?” Venus asked, inquiring of the construction project Cora’s company was undertaking.

“Both, but one of them wanted an ear, an eye, an arm, and a leg, so they might have to suck it up,” Cora said.  “What’s up?”

“Well, Jake’s bringing his cousins on a tour of the surface, and he wanted to know if he could let his six-year-old cousin take pictures from the roof of the Spire,” Venus asked.  The group were in their cars, slowly folding into the general Startseite traffic.  They were far enough away from the Spire that they could divert to another building if they needed to.

“Of course!  Should I make an appearance?” Cora asked.

“If you want, then of course, it’s your home.  We saw Faith at Imperator,” Venus said.

“Yeah, how is she settling in?” Cora asked.

“She seems great,” Venus said, nodding to Jake, who sent a confirmation message to the other cars in the convoy.  “We’ll be by in ten.  Thanks, Cora.”

“Hey, no problem, I haven’t had a chance to say hi to you since you got back anyway.”  She thought for a moment.  “Hey, uh, so there’s no surprises…how did it go?”

Venus glanced over at Jake, still busy at the controls.  “Jake’s just fine.  He’ll be with us.”

“Great!  See you soon.”


Ten minutes later, the group was standing on top of the Spire, Corvus Corax’s opulent home, and Mizuki was busily snapping pictures with the vox her father provided.  “This is amazing,” Walter said, looking out over the drop to the city below.  The structure loomed over the city like the hive spire against which it backed.  Venus was sitting by the edge of the structure, pointing out significant structures for Mizuki to capture.  “It’s like a different planet,” he continued, overawed.

“I know.  I felt the same way,” Jake said.  He looked over at his uncle, who was standing stock-still.  “You get vertigo, man?”

“No, but…this is amazing, it’s like I’m on an ornithopter over the Gap,” Walter said.  He was talking about the cleft between two hive spires atop his cube, so far apart that a smaller hive could have been built between them with room to spare.

“It is pretty amazing.”  George gingerly stepped up to the edge, glancing down the endless-seeming drop.  “The hives on Mars were this big, but they weren’t open to the air.”

“I should go see them sometime,” Jake said.  “What was the Seminary’s hive like?”

“A vault.  So cramped…even compared to Tetra.  It was basically a gigantic cathedral,” George said.

“Venus, who did you say this place belonged to?” Hajime asked, holding tight to Mizuki’s hand.

Venus saw a shadow move on the ground behind them and smirked at the timing.  “My cousin Cora, who’s staying here until her own house is built.”  The shadow was moving opposite the direction of the clouds, and was very clearly defined.  Venus raised her voice.  “It’s a real shame she can’t stay in her own place like a grown-up,” she said loudly.

“Hark who speaks, you can’t even pick a planet!” Cora’s voice replied.

The group turned to see a pretty, dark-haired young woman sitting cross-legged on top of one of the air conditioners on the Spire’s top surface.  She smiled down at the group.  “How’re you doing, Venus?”

“I’m great, thanks for the invite,” Venus called back.  Cora nodded from her perch.  “We appreciate it.”

Cora uncrossed her legs and dropped the fifteen feet from her seat to the level that the others were on, landing with her arms already out for a hug.  “After two months, you can sit on my rooftop all you want,” Cora cheerfully replied, grabbing the shorter woman in a playful squeeze.  “How was the trip?”

“Fantastic.  I brought home something like five volumes to give you.”  Venus patted her pocket, pulling out a small data disk and handing it over to her cousin.  “Enjoy.”

“Yeeesssss, a sacred exchange,” Cora said, rubbing her hands together.  “Who knows you have them?”

“They’re not proprietary, wiseass,” Venus snorted.  Cora’s face fell.

“Aww, and I thought we were being clandestine!” she said, disappointed.  She glanced over at her guests.  “And who might you be?”

George shook himself loose from his surprise at her entrance.  “Uh, I think we’ve met,” he said.

“Right, the wedding,” Cora said, remembering.  “Nice to see you, Sieur Seager.  And you, ma’am,” she said, waving to Sandra.

“It’s been too long, Lady Cora,” Sandra said, dismissing her own shock at the superhuman display.

“Are you okay?  You fell like two stories!” Mizuki asked, deeply concerned.

Cora smiled.  “I’m just fine.  We’re built for that.  What’s your name?”

“Oh, I’m Mizuki,” the girl said, a little nervously.

“Corvus Cora, welcome to the Spire,” Cora said, gently shaking the girl’s hand.  She straightened up, smiling at the rather shell-shocked hivers behind her.  “The name’s a little pretentious, I know, but some habits die hard.  Who might you be?”

“First Sergeant Eric Donnelly, Imperial Fists Ninth Army Group,” Eric said formally, though he was wise enough not to salute.

Cora nodded politely.  “Sergeant.”

The others introduced themselves piecemeal.  Cora shook each proffered hand in turn.  “So what brings you topside?” she asked of the group, though of course Venus had already told her.

“We wanted Zuki to see what the surface looks like,” Venus said, smiling down at her cousin.

Cora nodded again, sagely.  “And what do you think so far?” she asked.

“It’s so big!  There’s so much air I feel like I’m going to stop breathing!” Mizuki said nervously.

“Well, you won’t.  It’s supposed to be like this,” Cora chuckled.

Venus piped up.  “So, Cora, how’s the development going?”

“Surprisingly slowly, given how much the Guild was nagging me,” Cora said, glancing back at her cousin.  Baffled looks on the hivers’ faces urged her continue.  “I’m in the macroconstruction business.  Theme parks, Prometheum refineries, office complexes, colony sewage treatment plants, what have you,” she explained.  “Anything so big that normal manufacturing and construction businesses can’t get it done economically.”

“Really?  That seems to be a pattern with the Royal Family,” Sandra said.

“What do you mean?” Cora asked.

“Well…I mean that most of Venus’ generation seem to be more interesting in working in the private sector rather than the government,” Sandra said.

Cora shrugged.  “Some.  Not all.  Hana’s in the Rough Riders.  Well, the White Scars elite auxiliaries, anyway, which means Rough Riders to me.  And a bunch of the rest of us are in the political sector.  I just prefer working in the private sector since there’s more of a challenge.  You know?  If you fail, you fail on your own merits.”

Hajime’s lips compressed a little as she said that.  Certainly what she said wasn’t true in a lot of industries.  Sometimes it felt like the aircar industry was so far into the pockets of the boards that ran them, it was impossible for anything to change for the better.

Cora noticed his anger, of course; her senses rivaled Freya’s.  She decided it was best left unaddressed, for now.