[Lauchenoiria]

Unclaimed Territory, equidistant from LOM and Kerlile
Shortly before midnight

The Kerlian stood next to her truck, leaning against the front, sunglasses on her face in spite of the absolute darkness of the area. The others were spread out, waiting by the starlight in the middle of the desert. It was cold, the way deserts could get in the night, and the Kerlian wrapped her long trench coat around her tighter. She was aware of how stereotypical she looked; she relished it.

Her radio crackled, “they’re on their way.”

“Copy that,” she said, then with a gesture from her, the drivers of the two Kerlian vehicles switched on their headlights, blindingly bright in the starlight. After a few minutes, the Maximusian vehicles drove up, and sat, idling their engines, clearly wanting to be able to make a quick getaway.

The Kerlian walked forward as her Maximusian counterpart left his vehicle. His posture was stiff, and his nerves were visible on his face even as he tried to hide them. The Maximusians were more scared of Kerlians than the other way around. She was relaxed; she didn’t expect them to double-cross her, and since Kerlile wasn’t planning anything untoward, there was no need to be concerned unless some further evidence came to light.

“Here we go again, hm?” she said brightly. “We’ve got your people in the back, unharmed as you specified. Have you got what we agreed?”

“You first,” he said tersely.

“Still distrustful, I see,” she shook her head and made another gesture. The back doors of the van which had accompanied her own vehicle were opened, and three blindfolded women were led from the van.  “Two journalists and a spy, as promised. As you can see, there’s not a scar on them.”

She gestured again, and those leading the captives spun them around to show off their scar-free skin, shivering in the cold of the desert night. “Now your turn.” The Maximusian man hesitated for a few seconds, before turning and nodding to his own men.

The captive they led out of their van was in a much worse state than the other trio. She looked underweight and had some old scars – faded, whatever had happened to her, it hadn’t happened recently – across her skin. She was struggling to get away from her captors, fighting even as she looked too weak to fight. The Kerlian stiffened at the sight of her.

“Let’s get this over with,” she snapped, her falsely joyful tone gone from her voice. The two groups exchanged their prisoners without any further comment or hassle.

As soon as the three Maximusians were in the vehicles, the contingent from LOM drove off at high speed. The Kerlians lingered further, chuckling a little at the sand blowing around in the van’s wake. Maximusians were always so eager to get away from their Kerlian counterparts during these prisoner exchanges.

“So,” the Kerlian said as she leaned against the door of the van they’d managed to get the struggling Aurora into. “You don’t seem particularly happy to be returned to Kerlile.”

The Aurora remained silent, staring at the wall of the van.

“I know they tortured you, did they break you? You’re safe now, yet you look terrified. Did they give you some kind of drugs before they handed you back?”

She still did not respond, and the Kerlian sighed, motioning for the others to shut the doors. She got back in her own vehicle as they began the process of turning around and heading back to where they’d left the helicopter. “Next stop, Kerlile!” she said cheerily to her subordinates as they drove the Aurora home. “And long live the Matriarchy!”

[Lauchenoiria]

Maytown Military Airfield, Kerlile
Approximately 6am

Councillor Hale stood with Councillor Pierre, chatting idly about the EUDCA amendments that they both supported as they waited for the helicopter to arrive. They were here to welcome the Aurora back to Kerlile, and neither of them were particularly pleased about the early hour of the morning, but Pierre was determined to see each Aurora home, and Hale was determined to oversee all contact between Pierre and Auroras.

“There we go,” Hale said, spotting it approaching, and the two Councillors fell silent, watching as the helicopter carrying Janet Ashton came ever-closer to the ground. Though the two of them had long been rivals, Hale didn’t trust Pierre, and Pierre thought Hale was more loyal to Lauchenoiria than Kerlile, they both understood each other in a way that made it easy to spend time together.

Once the blades had stopped spinning, and the Aurora had been led out of the helicopter, the two Councillors approached, with their security details following at a two-metre distance. Ashton looked disoriented, slightly malnourished and was clutching a jacket she’d been given like it was a shield.

“Janet Ashton, Aurora Jade, welcome back to the Matriarchy,” Councillor Pierre said warmly, holding out her hand for the Aurora to shake.

But Janet Ashton didn’t take her hand. In fact, Janet Ashton turned so incredibly pale it was like all the blood had been drained from her by magic. Janet Ashton stepped backwards, shaking so hard that even that simple action caused her to tumble to the tarmac, her hands automatically reaching out to steady her in a way that was instinctive. Then, Janet Ashton, Aurora of Kerlile, screamed at the top of her lungs.

“WHY!?” she yelled, at the ground, at the Councillors, at the Goddess. “I COULDN’T! I WISH I COULD BUT I COULDN’T. IT WAS TOO MUCH!”

“Ms Ashton, are you okay?” Hale asked, in spite of the very clear evidence she was not.

“I know, I know, I know what I was trained to do, but it’s so different in the moment, it’s so sore, it’s so painful, it’s so relentless and you know that it will never end, it will never end for all of time unless you… please, please, please!”

“Ms Ashton,” Jennifer said softly, crouching so she could look in the Aurora’s eyes. “I’m Councillor Jennifer Hale, I don’t know what was done to you, but you’re safe now.”

“Please, Councillor, I had no choice!” Janet met Jennifer’s eyes, tears streaming down them, the salty water pooling on a raised scar that looked old on her cheek.

“Ms Ashton, it doesn’t matter what you told them,” Councillor Hale tried to soothe her. “All has been forgiven, and you can now live whatever life you…”

“LIAR!” Ashton hissed in Hale’s face, causing the Councillor to jump back in shock and her security detail to raise their weapons. “LIAR, LIAR, LIAR! You never forgive, you never forgive, you’ll kill me, you’ll kill ALL OF US because YOU SENT US TO DIE!”

The Aurora let out a wordless scream of rage, loud enough that Councillor Pierre moved to cover her ears. Janet Ashton was rocking on the ground, her nails scraping along the tarmac as she dripped tears all down her body. Hale edged backwards until she was within whispering range of Pierre.

“I’ve not seen one this broken yet,” Pierre said, calmly. Hale stepped back again, further from the other Councillor. She couldn’t take her eyes off the Aurora.

“You TOOK US, you USED US, you HURT US, and you EXPECTED US TO DIE. We only come back if we fail, right? RIGHT? So I’m a failure and Goddess forbid I’m a failure. I’m a traitor, I’m a traitor and I will die. I deserve to die. I SHOULD DIE. But I don’t want to die!”

“Jade…” Pierre tried saying.

“THAT IS NOT MY NAME. NONE OF IT IS MY NAME. I DON’T EXIST. JUST KILL ME. JUST KILL ME. JUST KILL ME.”

The Aurora continued to repeat those three words, as Hale walked backwards, beginning to shake herself as her personal assistant Emma approached and put her hand on the Councillor’s shoulder.

“Councillor Hale, security would like us to depart while they calm the Aurora,” Emma said in a low voice to her employer.

“Look at her,” Jennifer whispered, staring at Janet Ashton. “We just rescued her from a torture centre and she’s… look what she thinks of us.”

“She probably hasn’t seen the news, she doesn’t know about the reformists, so…”

“She wouldn’t listen, why should she? Kerlile has been… to her we must seem like…”

“Councillor,” Emma prompted, gesturing to one of the vehicles. “We need to get you to safety.”

Jennifer Hale allowed Emma to lead her to the car and open the door for her, but all the time she couldn’t take her eyes off the shaking, weeping, screaming Aurora who looked like she’d been through hell and back… but hadn’t made it through unscathed.

[Lauchenoiria]

Main Bedroom, Hale Residence
25th February 2021

Councillor Jennifer Hale sat on her bed, sobbing. She hadn’t managed to get out of bed yesterday, and her personal assistant, Emma Woodward, had come to see if she needed anything. Jennifer had asked Emma to take a seat, and then proceeded to start sobbing on her bed as Emma sat there awkwardly, watching the crying Councillor.

“Councillor…”

“Please don’t,” Jennifer shook her head. “Don’t call me that. If you must address me, call me by my name, I don’t… I don’t want to hear that title.”

“As you wish, C… Jennifer,” Emma said. “Can I get you anything?”

“A time machine?” Jennifer asked hopefully.

“I… think that may be quite difficult.”

“Then I’ll settle for the downfall of the Sanctarian and Kerlian governments.”

“Um…”

“Not that I particularly have anything against Sanctaria, but if their government collapses then nobody will be around to enforce the Haven Accords or the TRC verdicts and then… I don’t want to be on the Council, Emma, I don’t want to be part of this!”

“Jennifer, what happened with that Aurora, it’s LOM’s fault, not yours.”

“That’s just it, Emma!” Jennifer threw her hands up in exasperation. “She would never have been beaten to a pulp in LOM if we hadn’t sent her there! Everything the Council has done for decades has caused harm. And we’re all complicit in it. My mother, my sister… they were both terrible people. That’s why I ran away from home at the age of thirteen. No teenager does that unless she has to. I almost died countless times, and that would’ve been preferable than being on the Council all those years.”

“I know you didn’t have a choice,” Emma replied softly, reaching out to take Jennifer’s hand. “I know you want to be in Lauchenoiria… you want to be Sonja Viratnen, not Jennifer Hale. But very few of us in life have choices. Since joining the Council, you’ve changed it, you’ve changed things, made them better. You’re not complicit in the harm, you’re helping to end it.”

“No, Emma, I’m not,” Jennifer said, pushing her away. “Listen to me. I was happy in Lauchenoiria, I was doing good. Here, I am continually being tested, pushed, having my morals questioned and being slowly corrupted piece by piece. The longer I remain here, remain on the Council, the less of me there will be left. But I can’t leave this godforsaken country thanks to the TRC.”

“Jennifer, you’re not changing. You’re still the brilliant, wonderful person I have the pleasure of working for.”

“I am, though. The way I’ve compromised my principles for the benefit of the Kerlian state… my literal job is to work for the good of the Kerlian state, but far too often that is in conflict with what I know to be right. I have no choice but to betray either my principles or my country day-in, day-out. Do you know how that feels? It’s horrendous. I cannot and will not do this anymore.”

“C… Jennifer, what do you mean?”

“I refuse to go to the Council Chamber. In fact, I refuse to leave this house until I can get out of Kerlile. I’m done, I won’t play this game.”

“Jennifer…”

“I mean it, Emma,” Hale said sharply, sitting up and looking her in the eye. “I will not work for a country that does that to people. I’m done, I’m out, goodbye. They can try to force me, sure, but not without breaking their fundamental principles. We do not set foot on each other’s land without permission.”

Emma sighed, nodding and standing up to leave. It was useless trying to argue with Councillor Hale when she got this way. Besides, she’d learn soon enough that most of the Council did not respect the sanctity of the other Councillors’ land, and hadn’t for many years. If the Council wanted to force Hale to join in, they would.

[Democratic Republic Of Eiria]

Ersala Prison, Northern Eiria
March 4th, 2020, 9:36 AM

Correctional Lieutenant Alisa Remarre stood before a metal desk, casually drumming her fingers on the table. A small folder sat on the table, accompanied by two uncomfortable chairs on either side. The walls were concrete, with a large mirrored window on one side, and an old clock on the wall. She felt herself swaying slowly with the clock’s ticks, bored out of her mind. Are the people in prisoner movement always this Chronologically Impaired?

The plain door opened, allowing two prison guards and a prisoner to enter. The prisoner was in the standard odd-looking grey Eirian prison jumpsuits, with a bright yellow armband on her arm designating her as Medium Risk. Medium Risk. That's hilarious. She could kill us all if she wanted. What naive bureaucrat thought that one up?

Instead of saying her mind, the Lieutenant put on a smile and gestured to the metal chair on the other side of the table. "Miss Nelson. Welcome. Please, take a seat."

The woman hesitated, reluctantly taking a seat after a few moments. "Thank you." Remarre opened the folder sat on the table, pulling out a sheet of information with Riley's mugshot and information. "Would you take a look at this, and confirm that it is correct? Riley Nelson, Age 20, former resident of New Riga?".

The prisoner barely spared a glance at the sheet, nodding slightly. The Lieutenant sighed."...Okay. As you know, Miss Nelson, your prison sentence is up, and you are being released. I'm here to discuss your options with you."

She continued. "As you know, it will be more difficult for you to stay here, given your conviction. Therefore, I am here to give you two options. Option one, you leave Eiria. Where you go, we don't really care, as long as you leave Eiria."

"Option two, you stay in Eiria. You would be given a special circumstances asylum, and you would be given a job at EICA, likely on matters of Kerlian intelligence. You would be under the protection of the Eirian government, and you could live out your life in peace. Not having to worry if you'll be discovered, or hunted down by your government. Obviously that's the option we'd prefer you take, and the option that has the most certainty and stability."

Riley rolled her eyes and broke the silence. "And if I take option number one?

"We can't stop you. If you head back to Kerlile, you'd be at the mercy of the Council, and what they'd want to do to you. You'd be signing your fate to them. If you go anywhere else, I doubt anyone would trust you. Wouldn't you prefer living in a country with free speech than living somewhere where the wrong words can get you imprisoned, or killed?"

Riley remained silent this time, allowing the Lieutenant to open the folder once again and pull out an ID card and a business card. "Here is your Temporary ID. It is valid for two weeks. And here is the number for EICA. Tell them your name, and they'll get you started." She nodded to one of the guards by the door. "Officer Thompson will show you the changing room, where there should be some close for you. Is there anything else you want to tell me?"

She waited for a response, but got none from the Aurora. Remarre sighed and stood, walking to the door. "Okay. Consider the offer. It may be the best option you have right now. Have a nice life, Miss Nelson."

[Lauchenoiria]

Lake Salia, Eiria

Nelichē sat on the wall, sunglasses perched on her nose as she swung her feet, waiting for her former colleague to be released. A small device in her ear allowed her to hear her other former colleague, Veronica Penners, who was back in Kerlile. Veronica was watching them from hacked CCTV cameras, to check nobody tried to snatch her up as she waited for Riley Nelson.

“She’s on her way now,” Veronica reported through the link. “Camera 44.”

Nelichē stood up, slinging the strap of her bag over her shoulder and pushing the sunglasses on top of her head as she sauntered gracefully over the small strip of grass in the middle of the suburban street, looking confident and making a beeline for the location that Veronica had informed her of. They’d numbered the cameras in the vicinity in preparation, not that it was particularly necessary. She didn’t anticipate trouble.

Riley Nelson was standing outside a corner shop, staring up at the sign in the manner of someone who had no idea what to do next. A CCTV camera pointed outwards from the shop above the ATM attached, which will be where Veronica saw her. Nelichē stopped across the street and surveyed her former classmate. She looked well, a little unsteady but unharmed and sufficiently fed. Nelichē was relieved. She approached.

“Welcome back to freedom, Miss Nelson,” Nelichē said casually. The other Aurora jumped.

“Rhona? You’re alive!” Riley Nelson grinned widely and hugged the other Aurora. “Given everything I’d heard, I feared the worst. But how are you here? Is it safe?”

“Relatively,” Nelichē replied, taking Riley’s arm and leading her away from the shop and its CCTV camera. They’d already calculated the safest location to talk, a small suburban dog walker’s park a few streets away. “I would rather not remain in this country any longer than necessary, however.”

“Understandable. Did Kerlile send you? What happened in Xiomera?”

“I came of my own volition, and that’s a long story,” Nelichē chuckled. “The TLDR is that Yauhmi made a deal with Kerlile that Xiomera-assigneds could choose to go home or remain in Xiomera using their cover identities but for real this time. Then there was a civil war, Yauhmi ended up being tortured, some of our kind helped her and now one of us is a Huenyan general.”

“I… thought I was only in prison for a year?” Riley asked, eyes jokingly wide. The two Auroras paused for a second, looking at each other, then burst out laughing.

“Well, you know what they say about politics!” Nelichē replied. “Anyways, I chose to return to Kerlile and there are a few of us back there from all over, including Renee. She wanted to come and meet you, but she was denied an exit permit because of some hassle with the Lauchenoirian Prime Minister.”

Riley stopped. “I thought you came to bring me back to Kerlile?”

“I did,” Nelichē said, turning to grin. “All will be well again, and we’ll be safe.”

“Safe?” Riley folded her arms, spreading her feet to indicate she wasn’t planning to move another step until this was resolved. “In Kerlile? After we’ve failed in our duties and been in enemy custody long enough to have told them something? Pull the other one, Rhona.”

“I prefer Nelichē now, actually, and yes. There was a blanket amnesty for all members of the Aurora Programme who breached any law of Kerlile during their time abroad. You’ll be perfectly fine, we’ve got a room for you all ready, and the reform is real this time.”

“Then why was Renee denied an exit permit?”

“Oh, they had her working as a double agent for Alvarez for a while, but it, well, kind of backfired and they got annoyed at her for being too close to some Lauchenoirian activist types. It’s fine, she’s not in prison, they just don’t want her going back to Lauchenoiria.”

“Rhona… Nelichē…” Riley sighed, shaking her head. “Do you honestly believe that? I mean, do you honestly believe this ‘amnesty’ is anything more than a trick?”

“I do, genuinely. Everything is going to change now!”

“Everything is going to change? Nelichē, we’re Kerlians. Things don’t change, not to that extent. Not unless it’s part of some endgame we don’t understand. If they’ve already found an excuse to ban Renee from leaving, what’s to stop them finding the same for us, one by one, until it’s too late and we’re all trapped? You were assigned to Xiomera, you studied their culture. Do you really think it’s any different for us? When we fail, we’re expected to fall on our own swords just the same.”

“Did they hurt you?” Nelichē asked quietly. “The Eirians?”

“What? No. Look, I believe that you’re telling the truth as well as you know it, but if what you’ve told me is true, you’ve become woefully naïve. I’m happy for you that Yauhmi spared you, but you can’t expect the same compassion from everyone. I’ve got two weeks to either leave Eiria or take a job with them, and I don’t want to do the latter. Until I know more, I don’t feel safe entering Kerlile again. So, will you help me, or not?”

Nelichē sighed, then nodded. She linked arms with Riley again, and began pulling her down the pavement a little further. “You need time, I get that. We can go to Huenya, we’ll be safe there, and it’s not so far from here. And you’ll see, in time, that Kerlile truly has changed. I know it’s hard to believe, I know the Eirians will have told you otherwise, but when you see, you’ll be amazed. Now, come on, I’ve got us a hotel room, we can work things out from there.”

[Democratic Republic Of Eiria]

Cape Lucifer Area Special Case Prison, Western Eiria
i]March 3rd, 2021, 8:02 AM

Correctional Sergeant Rentan, standing tall in the prison watchtower, silently watched a prisoner being escorted to the prison gates, a guard on each side. The Aurora, he thought in anger. Why the hell are they releasing her?! She should be in prison for much, much longer than a bloody year. She’s a foreign spy, for the love of God! And a loyal Kerlian. Whichever judicial bureaucrat who thought letting her off with exile is either stupid or naive.

The Aurora, who’s name was supposedly “Diana Reese”, was led through a metal detector, then into a small building, where exiting prisoners retrieve a few possessions and clothes. And giving her a two week grace ID. It’s ridiculous! He sighed heavily as the Aurora was out of his sight, likely being questioned by some official in a last-ditch effort to recruit her. Good Luck with that. Sometimes I wonder what EICA is thinking, offering known spies jobs in espionage. Seems like a very bad idea.

He watched as the door opened again, the Aurora and guards leaving and heading for the gates, which were drawn open for them. He sighed, his fingers drumming on the safety wall. Hopefully she leaves Eiria. Or this could be a very short release.

[Lauchenoiria]

Somewhere in Huenya
Evening in Huenya, morning in Kerlile

Nelichē was completely miserable. She couldn’t get her head around everything that had happened. Her divided loyalties were tearing her in a thousand directions, none of which she wanted to go in. No matter what she did, someone would get hurt and killed. There was no other way it could possibly go. The only question was who would live and who would die. Inaction was a form of action, for her. She couldn’t just ignore it. So, Nelichē decided to choose the best of a bad bunch of options. She picked up the phone and dialled Councillor Robinson.

“This is the private line of Councillor Carmen Robinson, state your identity and business,” came the calm response from the phone.

“This is the Aurora Nelichē,” she replied. “I need to speak to the Councillor on a secure line about an emergency immediately.”

“Please hold,” said the voice, a note of worry audible. Nelichē waited for three minutes and twenty-six seconds before the line clicked and she heard Carmen Robinson herself. “Hello?”

“Councillor Robinson, is this line secure?” Nelichē asked calmly.

“Yes, what’s this about?” the Councillor was worried.

“I hope you’re right about this, I am not the person in this conversation who needs to ensure it is secure. It will be you in danger if you’ve lied to me.”

“I haven’t lied,” the Councillor said irritably. Probably true, by her tone.

“I know,” Nelichē said calmly.

“Know what?”

“Rita - Riley Nelson, I mean. Veronica Penners, Tlalzixiuhxa. Your Auroras.”

The silence stretched longer than Nelichē had waited on hold, before Robinson replied, her voice cracking slightly. “What do you want?”

“Nothing,” Nelichē said. “This isn’t a blackmail call, it’s a warning. Yauhmi knows. Calhualyana probably knows. Both of these people have strong relations with the Council. I’m advising you to do something about this before it leaks and becomes news.”

“What… what exactly do you want me to do?”

"Fix this, Councillor. I don't care about your plot, I don't support it, but I care about Yauhmi and I care about Huenya. Rita endangered them, because of you, so you're going to fix it or I will have to take matters into my own hands. Do the right thing, Councillor."

“What the hell do you expect me to do that won’t get people killed?”

“Not my problem,” Nelichē shrugged. “I didn’t set this in motion, you did. You’re going to have to decide who lives and who dies, because you created this situation - or, your mother did, I suppose. But she’s not here so the buck passes to you. I don’t care about your plot, I just want to avoid unrest in Kerlile. And I want to avoid destroying Kerlile’s relationship with Huenya. So, I’m warning you, because you’re best placed to work out how to get out of this with minimal casualties.”

“Nelichē, please, I…”

“Do something, Councillor, or I will,” Nelichē said, then hung up the phone, plucked out the SIM card, threw the handset on the ground and crushed it with her heel. She bit the SIM card in two and chucked one half in the nearby river. She placed the other half in her pocket, and picked up the smashed handset, throwing it in a nearby bin. Then, she got back in her car and drove away from the remote sightseeing spot she’d made the call in.

[Lauchenoiria]

Robinson Residence, Kerlile

"But I don't want to live in Zongongia," protested Natasha.

The Robinson family were in the living room of the part of their family property they actually used. Carmen sat on an armchair while her two daughters stared at her. The younger, Imogen, was cross-legged on the couch, looking up in alarm. The elder, Natasha, had stood up, hands on her hips, glaring at her mother.

“I’m not offering you a choice,” Councillor Robinson said calmly. “This is for your own good. You can stay with our cousins, you can learn more about the world outside the Matriarchy, and you can be protected from political changes that are likely to occur.”

Carmen Robinson had announced ten minutes ago to her daughters that they were going to stay with cousins in Zongongia for the foreseeable future. Her eldest had not taken the news very well. It didn’t matter that the aforementioned ‘cousins’ were actually members of the royal family of Zongongia, that they’d be staying in a literal palace, and that as a constitutional monarchy Zongongia was a freer and more pleasant place to live than Kerlile.

“What about Imogen’s education?” Natasha countered. “The EUCDA requirements? What if something happens to me and she can’t inherit because she didn’t spend enough years in Maytown and instead the Pierres somehow take control?”

“You’re sixteen, Natasha,” sighed Carmen, “and yet you’re making contingency plans for your own death. This is what comes of living here. You need to be able to rest, to live without the sheer paranoia of how our family lives in this country. Please, Natasha, don’t fight this.”

“This doesn’t make sense!” argued Natasha. “Why now? Things are better, why not do this years ago if you’re that scared?”

Carmen hadn’t wanted to tell Natasha about the true reason for this. She’d introduced the idea, at first, as an opportunity for her daughters to learn more about the outside world and gain skills that other Council heirs lacked due to living their whole lives in the Matriarchy. But if Natasha was going to push back so hard… she had little choice. Carmen stood, walking over to her daughter and whispered, almost imperceptibly, in her daughter’s ear. “Calhualyana knows about the Auroras.”

Natasha’s blood ran cold. She took a step backwards, then another, then another until her back was against the wall and she slid down it to sit on the floor. Natasha sat, gasping, shaking as she leaned on the wall, trying not to pass out. Imogen, watching this, looked between her sister and her mother, and then burst into tears. “I don’t understand!” she cried. “Why do we have to go? Why is Natasha shaking?”

“Shh, honey,” Carmen said, sitting next to her younger daughter and stroking her hair. “It’ll be okay. You’ll be safe in Zongongia, all will be well. Your sister will be there too and she’ll look after you.” Imogen continued to sob, burying her face in her mother’s stomach, clinging on as if to let go would cause some catastrophe.

“You’re not coming,” Natasha said, her voice hollow.

“I can’t,” Carmen shook her head. Natasha didn’t move.

“You’ll die,” Natasha whispered.

“None of us have a choice here,” the Councillor said, looking away.

“How did this happen?”

“We gambled,” sighed Councillor Robinson, standing up. “We lost.”

The two older Robinsons were silent, the only sound Imogen’s small sobs escaping as she cried in fear and confusion. Natasha stood shakily, walking over to her mother and then hugged her tightly, knocking them both onto the couch next to Imogen. Then Natasha began crying as well, and Carmen sat, holding her sobbing daughters, suppressing her own terror and wishing that there was some way she could create a miracle.

[Lauchenoiria]

Apartment Block, Eastern District, Grapevale, Kerlile

Emma Woodward hurried along the street clutching her umbrella against the falling rain. She ignored the three separate pairs of women sitting in parked cars pretending not to watch the building she was heading for. Upon arrival she scanned the names attached to the buzzers and pressed the one she was looking for. She waited, receiving no answer, before someone opened the door in front of her, leaving the building.

“It’s broken,” the man leaving told her. “Just go in and knock.”

“Thanks,” she said, folding her umbrella and stepping inside. The staircase was dirty and steep, built with cheap materials even when it was new. The walls were covered in posters reminding residents of male loitering laws, curfews from 2006 and criminals wanted who’d long since been executed. Dust that was as old as Emma herself coated the corners of the steps as she climbed upwards.

Reaching the door that she was looking for, she knocked hesitantly, somewhat reluctant to have to actually touch part of the building she was in. It was a government-sponsored apartment block for single males. A few years ago, there would have been a security guard at the door, watching the inhabitants, but the Reformists had scrapped that particular policy, and now it looked just like any other tattered apartment block in the poorest district of the Kerlian capital.

“Yeah?” a man poked his head around the door in front of her. He looked as if he was of either Serrielan or Iskirami descent and had a scar across his cheek that Emma recognised as the result of a punishment in an Alt-Ed centre. She winced.

“Sorry to bother you,” she began politely. “I’m looking for Finlay Hale. Is this his address?”

“Hah!” the man in front of her scoffed. “He hasn’t lived here for years. Nah, he’s still the legal tenant here, but only cause I’m not eligible for government support – long story. He lives in the southern district, hang on and I’ll give you the address… come in if you like.”

He left the door wide open as he darted around a corner looking for something. Tentatively, she entered behind him looking around. To her left was a door to a tiny bedroom where she could see an en-suite shower room past a cheap-looking single bed. On her right was a blank wall on which hung a noticeboard containing leaflets about bin collections, local laws and fire evacuation rules. Ahead of her was a small kitchen and living area, which the man had entered, which looked old but clean.

“Here we are!” he grinned, holding a scrap of paper out to her. “I’ve seen you on TV, you know. I really admire what Councillor Hale is doing. Is she sick? Only, she has the real address so if you’re here she mustn’t be able to tell you.”

“Councillor Hale is… presently on vacation from her duties,” Emma replied cautiously, taking the paper from the man. “Thank you for the information. Are you aware this building is under surveillance from three separate parties?”

“Three? I’d only noticed two. It’s okay, if they send me back to prison your Councillor will get me out, Finlay said she would,” he shrugged, still smiling.

Emma bit her lip as she thanked him and quickly left the building. She did not share his confidence in her employer’s ability to save random people from imprisonment for living under false pretences in an apartment registered in her cousin’s name. It was hardly his fault, of course – clearly some conviction had made him ineligible for support and he couldn’t find employment – but that wouldn’t matter to the Kerlian courts.

Returning to where she’d parked her car, Emma drove to the new address she’d been given, arriving on a suburban-style street despite the area still legally being in the city. The address on the scrap of paper corresponded to the end house of a terrace with a thick covering of plants in the garden almost hiding the front door from view. Emma pushed past vines and rang the doorbell.

Tricks of light flashed through the peephole in the door, indicating someone was peering through, and then the door opened a crack and a hand gestured for Emma to come inside. The occupant was hiding behind the half-open door, meaning she couldn’t see who it was. She wasn’t particularly happy with this scenario at all, but this looked like the kind of area where someone would call the cops if she loitered (in such areas, even people in democracies called the cops). She entered, and Finlay closed the door behind her.

“Is Jennifer okay?” he asked hurriedly. “She hasn’t contacted me or returned my calls for a month. Something seems wrong.”

“Something is wrong,” Emma confirmed, relieved to see him. He led her through into a cosy living room whose windows overlooked a tangle of tall flowering bushes. “She needs your help. I can’t get through to her.”

“Tea, coffee?” Finlay offered.

“Tea would be lovely,” she replied.

He got to work making them both cups of tea, gesturing for her to explain what was happening as he did so. They’d met before, but never alone together, and Emma found herself suddenly feeling flustered about this. She swallowed whatever she was feeling and began the story.

“At the end of February Kerlile and LOM took part in a prisoner exchange. Who we gave them isn’t important, but in return we got an Aurora. She was… broken. More than normal, the kind of thing we usually only see after someone’s been a year in the RR. Councillor Hale was there when the Aurora got back. It upset her deeply. She began doubting her work with the Council, regretting her position in Kerlian society.”

“This has happened before, though, hasn’t it?” Finlay said, putting down the teas alongside a jug of milk and a small box of sugar cubes. Emma stuck a lump of sugar in her cup, sighed and continued.

“Not to this extent. When she first returned to Kerlile she didn’t want to join the Council, but upon seeing the good she could do for only a few, she reconciled it. After the TRC verdicts there was a lot of… I guess it was homesickness for Lauchenoiria. But this is something different entirely. She’s taken to bed and gets up only to shower about once a week. She won’t do anything, she says she’s going to stay there until 2023 and then move back to Lauchenoiria.”

“That doesn’t sound healthy,” Finlay said grimly. “What about Council votes?”

“She refuses. And she throws a fit if anyone addresses her as Councillor which is making the staff very nervous. I don’t know what to do, I wondered if you might have some insights. Or, better yet, if you could come and try to talk her out of this.”

“You’ve spent as much time as I have in my cousin’s company,” he pointed out.

“Yes, but you’re not her employee and you are… well, to put it bluntly, with these EUCDA amendments about to pass, you are of a higher social status to me.”

Finlay almost spit out his tea in response to her statement. “A Kerlian woman, calling a Kerlian man of a higher social status than her… have the oceans turned to ice, have the skies fallen, have Mascalin and Feminea descended to the mortal plane once more!?”

“No need to be so dramatic,” Emma replied wryly, sipping her tea. “All I’m saying is, you and Amelia are her only living relatives and Amelia is not yet two. I think that perhaps she might react better to you than to me right now.”

“I am definitely a test subject for some odd psychological brainwashing, this simply cannot be real,” he noted, then sighed. “Very well, shall I come with you now? People talk; Carmen Robinson is supposedly sending her daughters to Zongongia for unknown reasons, and there’s a sense of foreboding among those of us working for reform. We’ll need my cousin’s vote more than ever in the coming weeks, I fear.”

“Robinson? I haven’t heard anything,” Emma shrugged. “I think you’re paranoid but regardless, there’s no time like the present. I’ll let you get anything you need.”

Emma sat in the living room as Finlay bustled about the house packing a bag for an overnight stay or two at the official Hale residence. She didn’t know if this was the right thing to do, or if it would somehow make things worse, but she was desperate. It had been a month since Councillor Jennifer Hale had bothered to leave her bedroom. This couldn’t continue much longer, or her political rivals would take advantage of it.

[Lauchenoiria]

The Robinson founder of Kerlile had been a member of the Zongongian Royal Family. Part of her decision in leaving Zongongia, renouncing her titles, and giving up on the security and stability her nobility had granted her was that she fell in love with a foreigner, an immigrant who happened to be Black in white-majority Zongongia. Her love – and the resulting mixed-race children – meant she had fallen far, far out of favour with her family. Hence the desire for a new start.

Now, when racial tensions were calmer, Kerlile was an established power, and the King of Zongongia somewhat feared a Kerlian invasion, the two branches of the family had reconnected, despite the distance between them. This meant that when the King received a message from his “cousin” Councillor Robinson asking him to allow her daughters to stay with them and live in Zongongia, he was perfectly happy to oblige.

Natasha Robinson, who had grown up in multi-ethnic Kerlile where sexism was encouraged but racism was rare, felt exceptionally conscious about the colour of her skin upon arrival in majority-white Zongongia. In the Royal Palace especially, the only people who looked remotely like her were servants. It freaked her out. She’d studied the history of patriarchy and gender-relations but race relations weren’t a subject she’d needed to bother with in the Matriarchy, but now felt rather pertinent.

“Excuse me, my lady,” a servant said, tapping Natasha on the shoulder. She blinked a few times before she realised the address was to her.

“Um…” she didn’t know what to say to that. In Kerlile, the word “lady” was taboo, but she knew from watching foreign movies that it was an address to nobility in the past. She hadn’t expected to hear it in 2021 and didn’t know how to respond. Fortunately, the servant ignored her awkward confusion and continued.

“Prince Kristofer would like to invite you to attend this evening’s dinner in the Sunflower Room at seven o’clock,” the servant informed her and then walked away.

Prince Kristofer was the King’s grandson, he was a year older than Natasha and would one day inherit the Zongongian throne. Natasha had no idea why her distant, distant cousin would want to invite her to dinner but she supposed he was being kind. She had no friends here in Zongongia, especially because she tended to misunderstand things. The royal family in Zongongia had little political power, the nobility were more figureheads, but she had been thrust in the middle of their social games anyway and she didn’t know what to do about it.

Natasha understood politics. If this had been an absolute monarchy, she would probably have got her head around things in a few days. As it was, however, elected politicians made the decisions and the nobility played pointless games trying to one-up each other while everyone else mostly ignored that they existed, except for during religious celebrations. Natasha didn’t really see the point in their existence, but she had kept silent about that.

She sighed, checking her watch. It was 3pm. Four hours before dinner, and she had no idea what to do with that time. Some of the other girls she’d seen about would probably spend the whole time dressing up, but such a concept was anathema to her Kerlian sensibilities. So, she found herself drawn, once more, to the Gardens of the Zongong.

The Gardens were a place for religious contemplation in the palace. They were where members of the Royal Family and their guests went to pray outside formal services. They were calm and beautiful, and despite Natasha’s atheism, she loved them. On her first day when she was being given a tour, she’d been told she could visit whenever she liked. Zongongists didn’t object to non-believers being present in their religious spaces. They wanted to welcome everyone.

Natasha came here when she felt stressed or missed home. Imogen had quickly made friends with other children, little fourth sons and daughters of Zongongian nobility who liked to run around the palace getting shouted at for touching the statues. There were less teenagers, most of whom were too old to accompany their parents, and too young to want to come of their own will. The only other girls her age was a cluster of heavily made-up nobles who wanted Kristofer’s attentions.

They hated her, and she hated them. They thought she was competition – she was, in a way, Kerlian nobility which made her eligible to marry into the Royal Family, and she was a distant enough cousin to counter any genuine allegations of incest. She thought they were a mob of racist creeps who practically walked around with a sign reading “Anti-Matriarchal Activity”. She’d been an advocate of scrapping the AMA laws but seeing this gaggle, she was beginning to change her mind.

Natasha Robinson had never experienced sexism or racism. Until the first day she moved to Zongongia, when suddenly she was accosted with both. Even her fellow women seemed to view her as some kind of object, a future wife to challenge their positions, an attachment to a future man. And they mocked her for her skin colour. They liked to make comments about her great-great-grandmother, as if the woman hadn’t died long before Natasha was born. She found it offensive, confusing and frightening, in that order.

Natasha picked up a rock. “I want to go home,” she whispered to it. “I don’t really know how to do this. Zongongists pray to rocks, right? Well, if you’re real, gods of Zongongism, please grant me this prayer. Please get me away from here. The palace is nice and I love your gardens but I can’t stand being called ‘my lady’ or having people ask me what my plans for marriage are. I didn’t really understand Kerlile until now. I understand it now, I really, really do.”

“We don’t pray to rocks, Kerlian,” scoffed a voice behind her. Natasha froze. She recognised that voice. Renee, or Regina… no, Renetta. “We channel the energy through rocks, the stable foundation of creation to contact the gods. But I’m sure you prefer chopping off a male’s finger to give to your warmonger goddess.”

Natasha slowly turned. Renetta was one of Kristofer’s would-be suitors, and she despised Natasha with a burning passion. She was pale as a sheet, wore her blonde hair in long, flowing locks and didn’t own any clothing that wasn’t pink. She genuinely looked like one of the examples of internalised misogyny on her exam papers for Culture class. When Natasha had looked in the banned books section of the Council library (as was her right, as an heir) she’d seen foreign princesses in fairy tales dressed like Renetta. Never in her wildest dreams could she have expected to meet someone like that in real life.

“Thank you for the correction,” Natasha replied, trying to keep her voice civil. “I still have much to learn about your country. These gardens are beautiful.”

“Yes, they are, so don’t touch anything,” Renetta sneered. “I know how dirty you Kerlians can be. Don’t you only wash every other week due to water shortages? I can practically smell the stench coming off you from the other side of the palace.”

Natasha stiffened. Did she smell? She’d tried hard to shower every day here, maybe she wasn’t doing it right. Renetta’s allegations were false, but it was true that you didn’t need to shower every day to be considered acceptable in Kerlian society. Two or three times a week was deemed sufficient. Not for conservation reasons, more because it was patriarchal cultures that obsessed with preening and appearances.

“I apologise if you dislike my perfume,” Natasha replied stiffly. She wasn’t wearing any, a fact that was very clear to both girls.

“Maybe you should go back to Kerlile and buy another… oh wait, you can’t because nobody will sell anything to Kerlile. What’s it like living on gruel and dirty water? You’re probably going to be sick tonight at the dinner because you’re not used to eating proper food. And you certainly can’t go dressed like that.”

Natasha looked down. She was wearing her favourite jeans and a long-sleeved t-shirt that had a picture of a rocket on it. Okay, it wasn’t the most formal, but it didn’t warrant the sheer disgust with which Renetta had said the words. “What’s wrong with my outfit?” she asked, challenging the other girl.

“You look like a boy,” she sneered. “A dirty little boy.”

Natasha snapped. She stepped forward before Renetta could react and shoved her, hard, into a water fountain behind them. As Renetta fell in the water with a splash and a shocked scream, Natasha stooped, scooped up an entire armful of dirt and soil from a nearby flower bed, and dumped them on Renetta’s head. Then, she leapt into the fountain herself and shoved Renetta’s head under, mixing up the mud into her hair. Renetta thrashed and struggled, and Natasha let up, leaping back out and running far, far away.

[Lauchenoiria]

Hale Residence, Kerlile

Finlay Hale knocked on his cousin’s bedroom door once more, expecting to be refused entry once more, as he had been every day since Emma had brought him here. To his surprise, however, she pulled open the oak door, leaning against it and looked at him with a resigned expression on her face. Her hair was dishevelled and had grown longer than she usually wore it. She was wearing a nightdress and smelled as if she hadn’t washed in a week. He’d been in a Kerlian prison, he’d seen and smelled far worse. He smiled at her.

“Have you decided you’ll talk to me, then?” he asked her pleasantly.

“You’re going to keep knocking every day until I speak to you, aren’t you?” Jennifer sighed, then without waiting for an answer, continued. “The small kitchen, give me half an hour and I’ll speak to you there. I want cake.”

She shut the door on him, and he sighed, heading towards the smallest kitchen and looking for a servant who actually knew where the cake was kept. Behind the door, Jennifer had turned on the en-suite shower and was digging through a wardrobe for something semi-respectable to wear. Entertaining a male, a first cousin at that, in her nightdress was not a done thing either in Kerlile or abroad. She spent no more than fifteen minutes in the shower, but she managed to wash her hair and get rid of the smell.

Councillor Hale dressed and glared at her reflection in the mirror. She hated her hair like this and she looked pale and depressed enough that she actually put on make-up, something which she rarely did in Kerlile where it wasn’t expected from any social class. She tied back the hair, but it still didn’t work for her. She grabbed a cap from the wardrobe which had the name of the Lauchenoirian football team she’d supported on it, and shoved the hair under it, before going to meet her cousin.

In the small kitchen (one of three on the property) she joined Finlay at a small wooden table on which rested a large chocolate cake and a pot of tea. Gratefully, she poured herself a cup, sipping it and pushing the knife towards Finlay. “Cut me a slice?”

“Is that not against social protocol?” Finlay smiled jokingly at her. “A man cutting a woman’s cake in Kerlile, of all places.”

“Emma doesn’t trust me with knives,” she replied. “Thinks I’ll… well.”

Way to kill the mood. Finlay silently cut them both slices of chocolate cake and slid one over to Jennifer, taking a bite of his own and waiting for her to speak. She took two bites and stirred some sugar into her tea before she sighed.

“She fetched you because I won’t get out of bed. Well, look at me. I’m out of bed. I still don’t intend to go to the Council Chambers or leave this property until I can return to Lauchenoiria in 2023. So, you can report back that I’m fine and not at risk. This is a… political protest.”

“Uh huh,” Finlay said sceptically. “That’s why you haven’t spoken to any members of the media about it. Or informed the Council, who you’re protesting against. Or the fact that you went from being almost inseparable from your young daughter to only seeing her for an hour a day when your servants bring her to your room?”

Jennifer had no response to any of that. She continued sipping her tea, then stood up and opened a cabinet, plucking a bottle of wine out without looking, knowing exactly where it was. She produced two glasses from another cupboard and placed them on the table.

“It’s the morning,” Finlay pointed out. Jennifer ignored him, pouring them both a glass. Finlay pointedly pushed his away to the side. “Jennifer. This is not healthy. Talk to me, please.”

“Do you know how I became a Councillor?” she asked him. “You probably don’t, it was hushed up well and you were still in prison then before I found you. They tortured Josephine. They had her at the edge of the Restricted Region, and they didn’t let me see her until she was already broken and sleep-deprived. The only way I would have had the power to free her was by joining the Council. I did not choose this life, I was forced into it under duress. And even when I saved her I lost her anyway.”

“I’m sorry,” Finlay told her. “They’ve broken so many of us, they deny people choices. But things have been getting better, and you’ve played a large part in that.”

“Have I? Pauline and I met an Aurora who was being returned to us. LOM-assigned. She sat down on the runway bawling her eyes out accusing us of planning to execute her. She didn’t believe us when we said things had changed. Like a Pierre would ever claim that if it wasn’t true! The truth is, nobody believes us. And as for President Arnott… she told me she’d support reform before she came out publicly. So, I know why. She supports reform because she deemed it politically expedient.”

She continued. “Yet the economy hasn’t improved. We have food rationing. The democracies still sanction us. Now that anti-Council sentiment is legal in some contexts, it is on the increase. How long will it be before Arnott decides oh, this isn’t actually benefitting me as much as I thought? Then she’ll roll back reforms, clamp down once again and nothing I’ve done will be worth a Lauchenoirian peso. Instead, my name will be among those hated for the cruelty of the Matriarchy.”

“I think you’re being too pessimistic,” Finlay replied gently. “We’ve achieved so much, and with the conflict in Xiomera over, the economy should start to improve. People are so much happier, and when the new elections are announced, Arnott will be praised.”

“I didn’t want to be on the Council. I didn’t want to live in this country ever again! I won’t be party to their games, their scheming, their loosening of laws only to tighten them again once enough people have stuck their heads in the noose. I hate who I am when I talk to the Council. I hate Jennifer Hale. Every time I look at her in the mirror I want to punch her smug aristocratic face.”

“Then don’t look at Jennifer Hale,” Finlay replied simply.

“What?”

“I’ve read about you and Josephine Alvarez, when you went by the name Sonja. I’ve seen the news articles of her political achievements with you by the side, looking at her with a love I can only begin to imagine. I’ve seen the videos of you and her and you look happy. Really, genuinely happy. Your own achievements in that time were not un-notable. Sonja Alvarez is you, too. When you look in the mirror, see her.”

“Sonja Alvarez never really existed.”

“Yes, she did,” Finlay nodded. “Yes, you do. This version of you, this depressed mess of a Councillor seems like a far less real person than Sonja Alvarez ever was. Who we are isn’t who we were born as. We make ourselves as we make our lives. So what if your name is legally Jennifer Hale? You can choose who to be.”

“I can’t, though,” she threw up her arms, exasperated. The wine was forgotten, untouched on the table. “I’m trapped here, in the Matriarchy. I have this job as a birth-right I don’t want and a duty I can’t escape. Even if I wanted to go back, I can’t for two more years.”

“You don’t need to go to Lauchenoiria to get back who you are,” Finlay pointed out. “The Council sucks, yes, but you can do good. You just have to push harder, take risks, and call out all their bullshit. And when the time comes, you have every right to throw in the towel and go back to Lauchenoiria. Have you spoken to Alvarez recently?”

“She doesn’t want to hear from me,” Jennifer said automatically. “Unless it’s about some intelligence backchannel, Auroras crossing borders, Xiomeran hackers, whatever… she resolutely will not take personal calls.”

“You ought to speak to her,” he said.

“She won’t listen.”

“She might if you tell her the truth, if you tell her how you really feel deep down. I can see it, I know you can see it too. The person you were then, that was real. The way you act in the Council Chambers is the act. Your love for her was genuine, you lied to protect her and you still love her. I know you’d do anything to win her back.”

“She’s the Prime Minister of Lauchenoiria. I’m a Kerlian Councillor. It’s a broken dream, even if she loved me back, she couldn’t be with me. No, I won’t ruin her life by sharing my problems with her.”

“Perhaps if you…”

“I said NO!” Jennifer yelled, slamming her hands down on the table hard enough that one of the glasses of wine toppled over and spilled. “It’s hopeless! Everything is hopeless! I love her, she can’t love me. I hate it here, I’m trapped here. I brought life into this world but I shouldn’t have because Amelia will just have to suffer like I do. She’s better off without me, and I’m better off without you teasing me. Get out of my house, Finlay.”

Jennifer stormed past him, pushing open the door so hard that a servant had to leap out of the way. She hurried back upstairs, leaving Finlay sitting at the table, sighing in her wake and eyeing the remaining glass of wine with temptation. Evidently, talking to Jennifer wasn’t going to solve any problems. He would have to try a different approach.

[Lauchenoiria]

Lauchenoirian Embassy, Grapevale, Kerlile

Susan Baxter, the Lauchenoirian Ambassador to Kerlile, was sitting in her office reading through the latest local newspaper, smiling. She was reading an article that was critical of the Greenwood family’s use of localised torture in Iletina Province. Even a single year ago, such open criticism of a Council family would have been impossible. Baxter used to loathe Kerlian newspapers, but now she was thrilled each time she managed to see the evidence of increasing reforms in black-and-white. There was a knock at her door.

“Come in!” she called distractedly.

“Sorry to bother you, Ambassador, it’s only that… well, you know Finlay Hale?”

“Councillor Hale’s cousin, the man she sent to Jinyu on her behalf causing outrage among traditionalist Kerlians and threats of a civil war that kept me up for nights? That Finlay Hale?”

“The very same.”

“What about him?”

“He’s here, requesting a tourist visa and an audience with Prime Minister Alvarez.”

Ambassador Baxter looked up, slowly lowering her newspaper to the desk, and folding it neatly. “I see.”

“What should we do? He’s filled out all the forms.”

“And nothing is wrong with them?”

“No, there’s nothing in there that would cause us to deny him entry.”

“Then process his request,” the Ambassador said. “I can’t guarantee that Alvarez will want to see him, but there’s no reason to keep him out of Lauchenoiria. Except, perhaps, for his own personal safety from the Sonja conspiracy theorists, but that’s his problem.”

“Yes, Ambassador. It’s only…”

“What?”

“Why would he want to speak to Alvarez? And on a tourist visa, rather than going through formal diplomatic channels?”

“Perhaps he merely means to visit his cousin-in-law on holiday,” smirked Baxter. “More likely, though, he means to speak with her on unofficial business, something the Council overall cannot hear about. Or, potentially, a personal matter relating to his cousin. It is not for us to decide, grant him the visa and he can seek to contact Alvarez if he wishes.”

“Yes, Ambassador.”

*

In the front room of the embassy, Finlay Hale went through a few pages of paperwork and chatted with a Lauchenoirian woman on the desk, who kept looking nervously behind him as if she expected Kerlian police to barge in to arrest him. She was not used to men coming with visa requests on their own behalf and actually being allowed to cross the boundary onto legal Lauchenoirian territory.

“Apologies for the wait, Mr Hale,” came the same voice who had spoken to the Ambassador. “We can proceed now, if you’ll come through to this room with your passport?”

Finlay smiled, following the woman, who took the passport and went through the process of granting him the visa, which would be valid for three months from the date of issue. While Lauchenoiria usually did not require visas for short-term travel, it was necessary in the case of Kerlians, who needed proof they could enter another country in order to get permission to exit theirs. The woman handed him back his passport at the end, smiling.

“Thank you,” he said upon leaving. He was pleased that Lauchenoiria hadn’t caused hold-ups. Now all he had to do was pay a visit to Councillor Robinson, since his own cousin wouldn’t help if she knew his plan. And then, he would go and see Alvarez, and hopefully a miracle would save them all from the danger posed by Jennifer’s own mind.

[Lauchenoiria]

(Jointly written with Xiomera)

The sun hadn’t yet risen when the pair of Auroras crossed the Intra-Xiomeran Canal on a wooden raft that could be mistaken from afar as driftwood. In spite of this, they were over the water quickly, timing their entry to avoid the border guards. Once they hit the tree line, it was likely they’d have to knock some people unconscious, but they were prepared for this. They followed the plan to the letter, and nobody saw their faces as they made their way into Xiomera to blend in with the crowds and make their way to the rendezvous.

On the other side of the country, the Xiomeran navy spotted an unregistered craft and approached, to find a boat empty of humans but containing several bags of cocaine and some cheap-looking guns. While they were distracted dealing with this, the misdirection had allowed yet more of the Aurora’s team to land on the shore and vanish into the population as if they’d always been there. How they managed to accomplish this would remain a secret from all those who weren’t privy to the machinations of Auroras.

Not all the entries went as smoothly. The final trio of Auroras stumbled upon a group of guards in the woods that shouldn’t have been there, according to their plans. They managed to dispatch the entire group, then ran across the problem of explaining the dead guards. They thus wasted time tracking down a jaguar and attempting to make the scene look like a fight between the guards and wild animals. It was a shoddy job, by the standards of Auroras, but it merely had to confuse those who stumbled upon it, rather than convince them forever.

The Huenyan team entering Xiomera had a much easier time of it, simply because they were able to blend in as Xiomerans. Tlalmaxxi’s ASI experience had enabled them to put together credible identities if anyone had run across them as they snuck across the border at Zapotlán. Fortunately, no one did. In twos and threes, the Huenyans made their way across the border at unguarded points, managing to blend in. Even months after the war, a jumbled press of people was still streaming between Huenya and Xiomera, either fleeing from the rise of Calhualyana’s Empire or running to it and away from the emerging Huenya.

The Shorn Ones in the group had to cut off their distinctive braids and remove their traditional face paint before making the crossing. Likewise, when crossing, Huatli and Tlalmaxxi had to adopt every trick in Tlalmaxxi’s old ASI disguise repertoire to make it across. But in the end, they had made it. The next task for the groups was to make it to the Imperial capital, and to Zipacpepe. Zipacpepe was the worst slum in all of Xiomera, a virtual no-man's-land where only the most destitute lived, and criminal gangs ruled. No Xiomeran Emperor had ever managed to tame Zipacpepe, and its residents lived in an uneasy ceasefire with the Imperial Police and the government. No one, especially foreigners, ever voluntarily went to Zipacpepe. But it was only there, of any place in Tlālacuetztla, that the group would be safe from the prying eyes of the Empress.

*

Xing Yawen took a deep breath as she stood to address the group. She spoke softly, so they could only barely hear her, and she tried her hardest to avoid mentioning any terms that would cause suspicion, even though they'd swept for bugs twice as many times as protocol demanded. This was, even for Auroras, one of the most dangerous things they'd ever attempted.

"So are we all clear on our roles? When we arrive at the location we take the lead from the Huenyans, we take our designated places and we are careful to use our equipment as little as possible to reduce sound and suspicion. We are here to help our own, not to harm others. Are there any further questions about the logistics before we settle down for the night?"

”The only thing I would add is this,” Huatli said. “Please make sure to follow any commands we may give without hesitation once we are inside the location, particularly hers,” Huatli said while pointing to Tlalmaxxi. “She knows the location better than anyone here. Even if she says to do something that may not make sense...just do it. We cannot afford to make any mistakes, so please trust us to guide you. You have all seen the blueprints, but we know the place. Blueprints can lie. Firsthand knowledge can too....but not as likely that it will.”

“If there are any other questions that you have, or anything else you need for your....visit tomorrow, let us know as well.” Amequic, their host, nodded as he stretched his arms over his head and stifled a yawn. “Also, once you are done, I will add this: get back here as fast as you can. The streets of Tlālacuetztla are not safe for you. But in Zipacpepe, we rule, not the police.” By we, Amequic meant the Xiomeran criminal underground that controlled Zipacpepe so tightly that even the police had trouble gaining access.

"Duly noted," Yawen nodded. "This is going to be dangerous, of course. There is a chance not all of us will come back. We need to be prepared for that. If there is anything you have to do tonight to make peace with the world, this is your chance. You may not get another."

A silence fell across the group as they considered Xing Yawen's words. This was a risk, a huge one. Everyone there had accepted the risks, the possibility that this would be their final destination. But hearing it aloud, the night before, was intimidating even to the Auroras in the room.

Amequic shrugged. “Everyone dies someday, that is guaranteed. We may die for harboring you here and helping you. But it will be worth it, to stick our finger in the government’s eye,” he said with a hearty laugh. “Besides, if you’re going to die someday anyway, might as well accomplish something while doing so instead of passing away in your bed as a frail old person wondering what you could have done.”

"I think that's quite enough talk of death," Riley Nelson interrupted. "All of us need to do what we need to do to prepare for a dangerous mission. What will be will be, we ought to focus on our preparations and not speculation."

”Agreed,” Tlalmaxxi said. Like Riley, and in good ASI fashion, she was now laser focused on completing the mission at hand. “I would recommend that you all check your equipment and kit thoroughly tonight before sleeping. Make sure you have everything you need, make sure it’s working. Our task will be hard enough without equipment malfunctions or lacking supplies causing issues.”

Several Auroras nodded, heading off to do their checks. Riley herself remained, eyes closed in the middle of a deep breathing exercise, while Samantha Collinsgate rolled her eyes. Each of them prepared in their own way, and each of them processed their own emotions about this. Those Auroras who served the Robinson family in particular, knew just how important this mission was. And all of them were desperate to succeed.

Amequic shrugged once more, not sure why Riley or Tlalmaxxi had objected to the discussion of the very real possibility that people would die on this mission. But for people in Zipacpepe, death was as common as seeing the sun rise each day; residents of Xiomera’s worst slum were too well acquainted with it to be bothered by it. He walked out of the room to make sure the security at the safe house was alert, and that his own people had everything they needed.

Huatli chose to prepare herself for the mission the way a Xiomeran (and now, Huenyan) soldier would. She meticulously cleaned and assembled her many weapons, making sure they functioned perfectly. She then went over everything else in her kit, making sure it was in order, before packing everything away. She then began performing a series of stretching and movement exercises; making sure her body was also in working order for the mission was essential. The exercises also helped focus her mind for what lay ahead.

Tlalmaxxi, for her part, spent her time reviewing, and re-reviewing, their entry plan and exit plan, as well as the diagrams and blueprints for the site and the surrounding area. She would be taking the lead in getting people into, and out of, the site. She had to make sure her knowledge was as sharp as her weapons. When she was finally satisfied with her planning, Tlalmaxxi then turned to making sure her own equipment was in order, before going out to the courtyard of the safe house to jog around the interior walls. Her effort helped keep her mentally focused - and too distracted to consider the possibility that she might not make it back home to see her husband or her son.

[Xiomera]

(Jointly written with Lauchenoiria)

The Tiazō, the central square of the Xiomeran capital, was the home of many impressive and important buildings. The Tepotzoyuc, the court building for Xiomera's chief justice, towered over the north end of the square. On the southern end, the Huēyi Teōcalli, ancient center of the Huenyan religion, glowered over the scenery like an animal awaiting prey. Various other buildings, including the Tlālacuetztla Municipal Palace, occupied other plots of land around the Tiazō like proud and sharply dressed children.

The complex at the western end of the Tiazō, by contrast, was not an example of ancient Huenyan architecture like the Huēyi Teōcalli, or elegant 19th century landmarks of Xiomera's headlong rush to modernize after the country opened up to the outside world like the Tepotzoyuc or the Municipal Palace. Built out of bone-white concrete and stone, and clad in relief murals resembling ancient Xiomeran glyphs, its Brutalist architecture was utterly different from anything else on the Tiazō. At just 40 meters high, its main buildings weren't even the tallest on the square. But while those not familiar with Xiomera might mistake the complex for some minor offices, Xiomerans knew all too well what lurked behind those walls - and underneath them. As the team began their approach from different directions, the lights of the Cauhloc glinted off its walls with the shine of a bleached skull.

The team would make their approach later in the evening, when there was much less likelihood of crowds being present in the Tiazō. Tlalmaxxi had instructed them to approach in small groups to attract less attention. Once in the area, they were to rendezvous on a back street near the Cauhloc that she had identified as a weak point in the perimeter and a point of quick access to the underground levels.

That evening, Riley Nelson was making her way towards the back street in question, alongside Samantha Collinsgate. They were pretending to be students on holiday when in public, the pair of them appearing to any onlookers to be relaxing, having fun and a little tipsy. In reality, their hearts were both beating twice as fast as usual and they were stone cold sober.

As Riley and Samantha passed the Tlālacuetztla Municipal Palace, a pair of municipal police eyed them. The male officer looked at them as if judging whether their intoxication level was excessive, before finally simply nodding at them and turning away. His female partner smiled and winked at the two foreigners as they walked past, either as a flirtatious gesture or a jovial sign to disregard her more suspicious male partner.

While that was taking place, another group of the team was making their way to the designated rendezvous point, Huatli and Tlalmaxxi in their lead. The two Huenyans had pondered how best to disguise their group, especially given the fact that Tlalmaxxi was one of the most recognizable people in the IDU. In the end, it had come to them as if from divine inspiration - Amequic had obtained a set of priestly robes for them. Complete with featherwork hats and face masks, they hid the identity of the wearers quite effectively. The disguise also ensured they wouldn't stand out: given that Xiomera's largest and most revered temple was just down the block, groups of priests were an extremely common sight in the Tiazō. Huatli and Tlalmaxxi would make the initial approach to the perimeter guards at the Cauhloc, posing as priests coming to visit prisoners and paving the way for the rest of the team to make the initial breach.

In contrast with Riley and Samantha's hiding-in-plain-sight strategy, Alyssa Robinson, Maricela Tobin, Lily Doll and Xing Yawen avoided any on-street scrutiny by taking a taxi to a nearby building full of offices, chattering on phones about stock markets and the most boring financial information they could.

They would make their way to the rendezvous pretending to be distracted on business phone calls, and anyone attempting to listen in to their conversation would likely have been bored out of their mind. They were the last of the team to arrive at the rendezvous, and then it was time to begin.

*

As planned, Huatli and Tlalmaxxi and their small group, disguised as priests of Huītzilōpōchtli, made their way to the perimeter entrance. “Good evening, sir. We are here to perform ritual service,” Huatli said to the first guard. Even at this late hour, this was not unusual in and of itself. The work of the Cauhloc never stopped, and priests would often be called to do their final work after the ASI agents had done theirs. As the first guard bent down to check Huatli’s forged paperwork, Tlalmaxxi grabbed him by the arm, swiftly injecting him with a hidden needle. The contents of the needle would knock the guard out instantly. Tlalmaxxi made it look as if the guard was walking with them into the guard shack to fool any watching cameras. The other Auroras and Shorn Ones, led by Huatli, followed them inside the guard shack and swiftly knocked out the remaining guards. All of this happened inside the small building, hidden from surveillance.

Inside the shack, the team quickly discarded their priestly garments. Underneath the robes, all of them were wearing ASI guard uniforms, also obtained for them by Amequic and his group of criminals. Some of the Shorn Ones would remain at the gate to pose as guards, in case anyone from ASI came to check on the guard shack. The rest would enter the first underground level of the Cauhloc - level B1, the service level. This level was used as both a storage and transport area. As they encountered ASI guards or civilian employees, the team silently incapacitated them or knocked them out, hiding them as they made their way to level B2. B2 was the security level for the underground part of the Cauhloc - and it needed to be disabled before any other part of the raid could begin.

Using keycards obtained from ASI guards, the team took the elevators and stairs down to B2, making sure there was no possible pathway down unguarded. At the entrances to B2, the team attacked quickly, overwhelming the ASI guards through sheer force and speed. The guards at the Cauhloc were complacent. No one, in the almost 60-year existence of the Cauhloc, had ever dared to attack the heart of Xiomera’s security apparatus. The very idea had been unthinkable - until today. Within minutes, the security level was under control.

Alyssa Robinson ushered Huatli and Tlalmaxxi into the office to get started on their technical manipulations of the security system. She took up her position at the door and nodded to Xing Yawen, who was the last of the group to exit the level into the stairwell. The two Auroras met each others’ eyes for a second, silently wishing each other good luck. They would need this to succeed, and to get out of this alive.

While the others provided them cover, Huatli and Tlalmaxxi got to work. No conversation was needed, nor was it desirable - time was of the essence. They both took a station next to each other, working to get into the ASI network. Tlalmaxxi had more knowledge of ASI protocols, but Huatli was more knowledgeable about Xiomeran computer networks in general. Between the two of them, they had just enough skills to make it work. Huatli hooked up a small USB drive to the portion of the computer system that linked to the video network. She managed to snag enough video of the security levels to create a loop to fool those watching the surveillance cameras, then nodded to Tlalmaxxi. The two of them had to time this perfectly.

With a silent countdown from three, the two of them entered the commands that would cut the surveillance feed from the underground levels to the main security center and began the video loop of the recorded footage. The switch should have been quick enough to avoid detection by those watching - they hoped. With that part done, the two of them began monitoring the network for any sign that the main security center had caught on to the mission, and was going to lock the underground levels down.

[Lauchenoiria]

The rest of the group made their way down the stairwell, as quickly and as quietly as they could. They left a Shorn One outside the door to the offices on level B3, followed by Maricela Tobin on B4, Xing Yawen on B5, more Shorn Ones on B6 and B7, and finally Samantha Collinsgate on B8. Lily Doll and a Shorn One waited at B7 until everyone else was in place, while Riley Nelson waited one floor lower. Both Auroras held the keycards they’d swiped from guards, waiting for Yawen in the middle to give the signal. When it came, both pairs swiped their cards and headed forward into the detention levels.

*

Riley Nelson cracked open the door to level B8, peeking for merely a second in order to see what was happening beyond. She clocked two guards within immediate range, signaled to her Shorn One partner, and then opened the door as they both aimed their guns and fired in unison. They pushed forward as the guards fell, running along the corridor to where they believed Tlalzixiūhxa was being held. Upon arrival at the door, Riley used the swipe card she’d stolen, hoping it would work. It did indeed.

She pushed open the door, impatient to discover what was on the other side. Then she stopped, frozen in place as she met the eyes of the other Aurora. Tlalzixiūhxa blinked twice, taking in Riley’s non-Xiomeran appearance, flushed face and the squinting slightly as she recognised her as an older version from the child she’d seen in a briefing sent by Robinson to her Auroras years previously.

“I’m going to guess that this is a rescue attempt,” she said, smiling slightly to Riley as she waited for an answer. For Riley’s part, she swallowed, letting the Shorn One who had accompanied her guard the door while she walked over to the older Aurora and looked her dead in the eyes.

“You broke,” Riley said. It was a statement of fact, not a question. The surroundings of the cell they were in made that perfectly clear.

“I’ve been here months… Rita, is it? It became impossible after they set that… demon on me.”

“Did you tell them?” Riley asked, her voice low. It was clear what she meant. In response, Tlalzixiūhxa turned away, biting her lip and remaining silent. “We’re all dead,” muttered Riley in response, then she gestured for Tlalzixiūhxa to follow her. The older Aurora cooperated, eager to put a border between herself and the ‘demon’, Mariya Adema.

Riley handed Tlalzixiūhxa a gun once they cleared the cell door, and they followed the Shorn One back to the stairwell. Yet more guards appeared around corners, armed with knives and tranquilisers. Between the three of them, each guard who appeared was out of the fight merely seconds after peeking around a corner. Some they shot dead, others they merely injured, judging it on their proximity, what weapon they carried and the appearance of their strength. When they made it to the staircase, without any injuries, they slammed the door behind them, locking it once more and nodding to Samantha who was still standing guard.

*

Back on level B4, where agents working long hours could sleep, Mariya Adema was roused from her slumber by a nagging feeling. She’d been up all night with Cozamalotl, again, and knew she needed more sleep, but something wouldn’t let her rest. It was as if the air itself had become stifling, or there was a noise just outside her range of conscious perception, or perhaps an unnatural quiet where one shouldn’t be. Mariya couldn’t tell, only that she was unable to keep sleeping.

She sighed, and pulled on a fresh set of clothing, brushing and tying her hair back to avoid needing to shower this morning, and headed out of the room planning to go back and give Cozamalotl yet another nasty early-morning surprise. She absentmindedly swiped her keycard to enter the staircase pulling open the door and coming face to face with Maricela Tobin, who had a gun pointed directly at her head. Mariya blinked, then reached for the knife she had strapped at her side. Before she could move, however, Maricela jumped forwards, knocking her head against the wall, and let her fall unconscious back through the door that then shut behind her.

[Xiomera]

Meanwhile on the floor above, Lily Doll and her accompanying Shorn One had broken through the door shooting, downing a number of guards who had been in their way. They were less merciful, all those who crossed their path were killed, quickly and painlessly, but without any hope even if medical attention was given immediately. Noises came from cells in response to the commotion, but Lily was focused on her objective. The other prisoners would find no salvation today.

Lily and Temexay made quick work checking the cells before they found Cozamalotl. Lily opened the cell using her stolen keys only to curse at the state his interrogators had left him in.

"We're going to need extra keys for these chains," she informed Temexay, irritated and almost gagging at the smell of vomit.

Temexay nodded, quickly running outside to find the needed keys.

At the sound of voices, Cozamalotl turned. His clothing was in tatters and he clearly hadn’t been allowed to bathe himself or groom himself in weeks. The dapper image he normally presented to the world was far gone, but even with that, his eyes still glimmered with weary intelligence. “If this is yet another ploy by Mariya or her minions, you really needn’t bother. I have never understood ASI’s need for theatrics. You all watch too many telestories,” he said in a dry tone.

"I don't work for ASI," Lily replied. "We're here to get you out."

Cozamalotl looked up from the chair he was in, seemingly unconvinced. “Or....you could be trying to make me do something that gives my torturers more of an excuse to torture me. Trying to escape would be yet another ‘crime’ the government could label me with.” He sighed. “But they hardly need an excuse anyway, and if there’s a chance you’re telling me the truth, why not.” Cozamalotl’s thoughts were interrupted by Temexay returning with the needed keys. “If you are indeed my rescuers, I thank you and don’t mean to seem ungrateful,” he began, then stopped at a noise from the doorway. A guard had appeared in the doorway. Temexay threw a dagger to silence him, but a fraction of a second too late. The guard had pressed a button on a device strapped to his belt. Within seconds, more guards were coming, their footsteps echoing down the corridor.

Lily swore again and pulled out two pistols, turning around to the door of the cell. "Get him free," she instructed Temexay as she fired down the corridor at the first guard she saw while kicking the first guard's body out of the way.

Temexay swore to himself as well as he quickly bent down to unlock Cozamalotl’s chains. “You must be a Shorn One,” Cozamalotl said, raising his hands. “Only a Shorn One would be brave enough, or crazy enough, to break into the Cauhloc. But she’s not a Shorn One....” he added, his eyes suddenly widening as he put two and two together. “Perhaps not only the Shorn Ones are so brave or crazy....” he murmured.

“We can discuss it later,” Temexay replied, focusing on the chains. With a final click, the last lock was removed. “Can you stand up?”

“I believe so,” Cozamalotl said, rising slowly to his feet. The two of them began to move towards the doorway, then stopped as Lily was already in the midst of several guards.

Lily spun kicking one of the guards in the groin as she reached out to shoot one in the head. The gun clicked; she'd used up her ammunition, so she dropped it and went to pull out a knife. Unfortunately, that brief delay allowed one of the Xiomeran guards to grab her arm and pull her off-balance. As she tried to regain her footing, another guard stabbed her in the stomach.

She gasped, pushing off the guard in front of her and slamming herself against the wall to give herself a second to glimpse her wound. It wasn't good; and she was already getting dizzy. There were too many guards, and she was almost out of weapons. Things didn't look good. As one of them pointed his own gun at her, she threw the knife at his head, but at the same time her legs buckled under her and she slid down the wall.

"Temexay!" she yelled as much as she could, though breathing was becoming harder. She needed assistance desperately, but several dead guards lay between her and the Shorn One, and getting past the unfortunate barrier would take half a second too long for the Shorn One to save her as further down the corridor a guard who'd only just joined the fray raised a rifle he'd managed to fetch from the weapons locker, and fired a bullet directly into Lily's brain.

As Lily fell to the ground and stopped moving, Temexay let out an angry growl. Rushing the final guard, he jammed his fighting knife into the man with such force that the guard was slammed into a nearby wall, the blade pinning him in place. As the guard struggled vainly to free himself, Temexay grabbed his mācuahuitl and ended the man’s efforts with a single swing.

Dropping the mācuahuitl, he ran back to Lily, bending down to try to help her. It was already too late; the gunshots the guard had fired had done their work. Sighing, he closed her eyes, saying a brief prayer that she be rewarded by the gods for her bravery. He turned back to Cozamalotl. “Sir, we have to go now, we have to get you out of here,” Temexay said, leaning down to raise Cozamalotl from the ground. He was surprised when Cozamalotl stopped him. “I can barely walk, after what they’ve been doing to me in here. And now, you’re alone. You’ll never make it out of here if you have to carry me along. Go on, get out while you can,” Cozamalotl said, shrugging Temexay off and leaning against a nearby wall.

“But I was sent here to rescue you. My mission must not be a failure.” Temexay moved to take Cozamalotl’s arm again, only to be shrugged off once more.

“Enough people have died for me,” Cozamalotl said, looking sadly at Lily before shaking his head. “I will not have your life on my conscience too - and it hardly matters anyway, if you insist on dragging me along, we’ll both end up dead anyway to no gain. Get out of here, Shorn One. Go home, and see your family, and live to defend Huenya once more.” Cozamalotl began limping along the wall, as Temexay looked on in confusion. “Where are you going?” he asked.

“I am off to be the bait. When any guards that come through here see me out of my cell, they’ll fall all over themselves to capture me. Who wants to be the one to tell Calhualyana that they let her star prisoner escape, after all?” Cozamalotl chuckled softly. “In that confusion, I should buy you and your cohorts a little bit of time to escape. Now go, Shorn One. Please. And….thank you for trying.”

Cozamalotl limped up the corridor, towards his destiny, as Temexay could only watch. Shorn Ones did not cry. Ever. But if they did, this would have been the time.

Feeling more frustration than he had ever felt before in his life, Temexay bounded the other way down the corridor.

[Lauchenoiria]

Jointly written with Xiomera.

The full team had finally gathered on the service level. Tlalmaxxi had led them to a secret tunnel exit which would allow the team to escape to a section of the Tiazō away from the Cauhloc itself. “Where are Lily and Cozamalotl?” Tlalmaxxi’s expression was one of concern.

“Lily fell in combat with the guards. I could not save her. I am sorry,” Temexay replied.

Tlalmaxxi absorbed the news with a grimace of sadness. “And Cozamalotl?”

“He refused to accompany me. He ran in a different direction, to distract the guards and give us time to escape,” the Shorn One replied. “He chose to sacrifice himself for us.”

“You shouldn’t have let him! We have to go after him!” Huatli shouted, already turning back towards the hall leading into the Cauhloc. Tlalmaxxi stopped her. “We cannot.”

“I will not just let him die! Not after Lily gave her own life for this.” Huatli glared at Tlalmaxxi, as if she was about to force the princess to let her go. But Tlalmaxxi was undeterred.

“This is our way, Huatli. Cozamalotl is giving his life so we can live, in the greatest Xiomeran tradition. If we go after him, we will all die. The guards are alerted and there are undoubtedly ASI special forces and Army rapid response teams heading our way now. If we do not leave now, Cozamalotl will still die, and his sacrifice will be for nothing.”

In answer, Huatli roughly yanked her arm free from Tlalmaxxi’s grasp, but nodded. She could not find words to speak.

Riley Nelson bit her lip and looked back over her shoulder, hesitating and glancing nervously for signs of pursuit. One of them had died; that wasn't supposed to happen. She felt an overwhelming sense of guilt all of a sudden, that she'd urged them to hurry and yet they clearly hadn't planned enough.

Samantha Collinsgate put her hand on Riley's shoulder and whispered to her.

"We can't change what happened," she said, while urging Riley forward behind the others and bringing up the rear herself. Samantha hesitated herself but only to make sure that Riley and Huatli were moving and weren't trying to turn back and do something pointlessly dangerous.

”We have to go now,” Tlalmaxxi said, a new sense of urgency entering her voice. “If I remember ASI response times as well as I think I do, we have only a few minutes to get down this tunnel and out into the city before we’re discovered. Once we’re out, we need to split up and leave in different directions to throw off any pursuers. Head back to the designated places in the neighborhood that our contacts gave us so that we can rendezvous at the safe house.”

Riley hesitated once more, then followed where Tlalmaxxi was leading. The other Auroras all followed suit, with Samantha bringing up the rear and encouraging the others to hurry.

The group had made their way after a few minutes of nerve-wracking progress to the end of the tunnel. There were two guards present, but the combined team made quick work of them. Tlalmaxxi opened the exit door using a stolen keycard, and began ushering the rest of the team through after checking to make sure there were no guards outside the tunnel.

While Tlalmaxxi was right in her assessment that there were no other guards outside the tunnel, she was incorrect in her belief that there were no other guards inside of it. One of the ASI special forces teams pursuing the Auroras was in fact nearby, led by another Kerlian with a hunch.

Samantha Collinsgate was at the back of the group as they broke out into the fresh air. She was ushering the injured Alyssa forward before she left when suddenly she felt a jolt and all her muscles spasmed as she fell down. A hand grabbed her ankle and yanked her backwards from the door before she could get her new bearings. She looked up just in time to Alyssa spinning around, a look of horror on her face before it closed, locking automatically and trapping Samantha with whoever had tasered her.

Though she was in pain, Samantha managed to yank her ankle away and flip over onto her back so she could stare at the face of her new captor. Mariya Adema looked down at her, a bruise forming on the side of her forehead, smiling at her new toy as further Xiomeran guards ran up behind her, their weapons trained firmly on Samantha. Mariya may have lost one Aurora… but she had, sadly, gained another. And she was going to have so much fun.

[Xiomera]

Palace of Flowers

Calhualyana was sleeping when the phone in her bedroom rang. The Empress quickly snapped awake; one couldn't be a heavy sleeper and survive, either as an ASI agent or a Xiomeran ruler. "What?" Calhualyana snapped.

Xiuhcatli, her steward, was on the other line. "We just received an urgent alert from the Security Ministry, your Majesty. The Cauhloc...is under attack," he said, his tone almost as disbelieving as Calhualyana's initial reaction. "The Cauhloc is under attack? By who?" Calhualyana was already rising from her bed as she asked the question, marching to her closet to throw on a simple jumpsuit and boots.

"We are not sure, your Majesty," Xiuhcatli replied, his voice wavering. "The attack is still taking place...."

"Meet me in my sitting room. Have a contingent of the Palace guards come with you. Five minutes," the Empress snapped, hanging up. Calhualyana searched through her closet until she found a particular outfit she had not worn in quite some time.

When Xiuhcatli and the team of Palace guards arrived at the Empress' chambers, they found her standing in the sitting room. She was wearing a set of ASI special forces combat gear. "Give me a rifle," she snapped to one of the guards.

"Your Majesty...we don't know who is attacking the Cauhloc, or why...it may be dangerous," Xiuhcatli demurred.

Calhualyana looked at Xiuhcatli, her gaze as sharp as the dagger strapped to her waist. "Do...I...need...to...ask...twice?"

Xiuhcatli hastily gestured to one of the guards, who handed the Empress his rifle and stepped back, bowing. The Empress walked out of her chambers, the team of Palace guards falling in behind her gesture to follow.

---

The ride from the Palace to the Cauhloc normally took twenty minutes in the light traffic at this time of night. It felt to the Empress like hours. Someone has dared to attack ASI.....if they are still there when I arrive, they will pay.

The Palace contingent pulled up to the main gate of the Cauhloc; ASI special forces and Army rapid-response teams, along with Imperial and municipal police, were already on scene. Calhualyana marched in with her team, making a beeline for the entrance to the underground detention wing. "Tlihue!" she shouted, spotting the Director of ASI. "What is the status of the situation?"

"Your Majesty....the attackers have already escaped," Tlihue said nervously, noting the rather white-knuckled grip the Empress had on the rifle she was carrying.

"Escaped," Calhualyana said flatly.

Tlihue began talking about how the attackers had managed to escape through an emergency tunnel, and about the attack itself, but the words barely registered to the Empress. With a sudden whirl, Calhualyana turned to a nearby wall, firing at it with her rifle. As chunks of concrete flew into the air and fell to the ground under the onslaught of bullets, she kept firing until the clicking of the empty rifle finally penetrated the red haze over her vision. She threw the rifle at the wall.

And then, as everyone in the immmediate vicinity was sure they were seeing their own death warrants, the Empress of Xiomera looked up at the sky and screamed at the top of her lungs, a pure cry of utter frustrated rage.

She turned back to Tlihue, grabbing him by the collar and slamming him against the closest wall. "Get....this....situation....under....control. And then, you and your deputies and the Security Minister will report to me at the Palace. You had better have an explanation for this."

Leaving Tlihue gasping for breath, the Empress stalked out of the Cauhloc.

[Xiomera]

(Jointly written with Lauchenoiria)

After a harrowing effort to escape from the Tiazō and into the streets of Tlālacuetztla, pursued by almost every law enforcement and military force present in the capital, the Auroras and Huenyans had managed to get back to Zipacpepe and disappear into its warren of streets and alleys. Not without further casualties; a Shorn One, sent to perform a delaying action to allow the rest of the team to make it out, held off an entire platoon of pursuing soldiers before throwing himself at the enemy headlong in one final glorious charge.

Back at the safe house, the members of the team that had survived were gathered somberly in the main room. Tlalmaxxi, as the nominal leader of the team, sighed. "I am sorry," she said after a moment. "I thought I had prepared us enough for this. I clearly failed."

"They took Samantha, at the end," Riley said, white as a sheet. "A worse fate than Lily's, probably. And it was too late. Calhualyana already knows about... we are all dead. This is my fault, I said we had to hurry. Oh Goddess..."

"This is no one's fault," Huatli said, her voice sounding as much as if she was trying to convince herself of that as she was everyone else. "We just went into the most secure site in Xiomera. We knew casualties were highly likely. But losing two Auroras....." her voice trailed off.

"I did not save Lily. And I did not save Cozamalotl," Temexay said, his voice devoid of all emotion. "I have failed, more than anyone. When we return to Chuaztlapoc, I will return my weapons to the Shorn Ones and go to the temple of Huītzilōpōchtli."

"After everyone we've just lost, Temexay, sacrificing yourself will benefit no one," Tlalmaxxi said softly. The Shorn One did not respond.

"All of us need to stop and breathe for a second," Yawen spoke up, looking around at everyone. She had drops of blood on her cheek and a cut across her forehead from a knife fight with a stray guard, though it had dried in by now. "This was a long shot. It is improbable that things will go perfectly every time."

"Calhualyana knows what?" Maricela asked Riley sharply all of a sudden. "Too late for what? Tlalzixiūhxa is alive. Cozamalotl was alive. What, exactly, was too late?"

Riley said nothing. Maricela hadn't known about the Robinson affair. She had been Tlalzixiūhxa's friend in training and invited on this mission for that reason. It did not mean that Riley, or the others, intended to reveal their true loyalties.

Tlalmaxxi was likewise confused by Riley's words. Even the princess of Huenya didn't have a high enough security clearance for the Federal Intelligence Service to let her in on that particular secret. "Calhualyana most likely knows about any internal Huenyan secrets that Yauhmi's former spokesperson may have been privy to. Along with details, possibly, about how Auroras are trained, which she will undoubtedly use if she can to make her own forces even stronger," Huatli replied. Her expression gave nothing away.

"This is unfortunate," Yawen replied, trying to steer things onto safer ground. "However, we have rescued our primary target, and we all went into this willing to make sacrifices. We were all willing participants. And now we need to get out of this country before they track us down."

”Agreed, and also, before we blow the cover of our hosts here in Zipacpepe. If the government hasn’t tracked us here already,” Huatli said. “We may get to leave, but they’re going to still be here, and I would prefer not to have their lives on my conscience on top of the ones already there.”

Tlalmaxxi nodded, returning to business. “Getting out will be considerably harder than getting in was. The police, security forces and military will all be alerted. Also, if I know Calhualyana - and I do - she will take this raid as a personal insult not just to the Empire, but to herself directly. She will stop at nothing to track us down.”

Tlalmaxxi picked up two paper maps, one of the capital area and one of Xiomera as a whole. The paper maps were incredibly anachronistic, especially to a Xiomeran, but they couldn’t take the chance of using electronic devices at this point. “Our best path out is to split up, like we did before, and take back roads through the country to Zapotlán as quickly as possible. Speed is what will save us now, not subterfuge - we have to get to the border and get across before the government’s dragnet is fully in place. We get across the border and rendezvous in the Canal Zone, and from there go to Huenya. If anyone presents a roadblock to us, we remove the roadblock by any means necessary. The time for subtlety is past now - it’s a race and we have to get across the border before Calhualyana finds us.”

"We ought to discuss the uncomfortable elephant in the room," Yawen reluctantly spoke. "If something goes wrong, if you're about to get caught and see no way out... each of us must choose whether we wish to have a permanent exit strategy as a backup."

”I would recommend having such a strategy,” Tlalmaxxi said. “I know too well what ASI is capable of, especially since they now have help from the outside world to improve their....processes. You do not want to be captured by them. Especially now. Calhualyana will be furious about the breach, and so will ASI. They will take it out on whoever they catch.”

"Oh Goddess, Samantha..." breathed Riley, wincing. The other Auroras looked uncomfortable with the thought.

Huatli shot Tlalmaxxi a look briefly that clearly indicated the General and the princess would be having a conversation later about tactfully choosing one’s words, before turning back to the others. “We will leave in twos - no one travels alone. Amequic will supply us with anything we may need if we are captured, for anyone that wants an exit strategy. He will also provide any other weapons or supplies that will be helpful in making our way out. Once we make it back to Zapotlán, we all know the rendezvous point.” The rendezvous point in question was another safe house, this one being maintained by the Federal Intelligence Service.

All the various remaining Auroras nodded. They were all prepared for this, they knew the plan and in spite of what had gone wrong, they were professionals and could deal with that once they were out of enemy territory.


---

Over the course of several days, the Auroras and Shorn Ones would manage to escape back across the border into the Canal Zone. Not, again, entirely unscathed; two Shorn Ones suffered injuries, one seriously so, in a fight with Imperial border guards. The Xiomeran government would not gain much information from that encounter, however. None of the platoon of border guards would be in a position to divulge much afterwards.

At the FIS safe house in Zapotlán, the Huenyans would be debriefed, along with the Auroras who chose to return. It was not guaranteed that all of them would. Some of them, the Huenyans knew, would consider their part in the rescue attempt done once everyone had returned. Other Auroras might well blame the Huenyans for the less than successful raid. In any event, the Huenyans knew that they had no real hold over any of the Auroras, other than any residual loyalty to Yauhmi some of them might have. The FIS was not stupid enough to try to press the matter further.

While the Huenyans licked their wounds and tried to content themselves with what success they had achieved, however, things in Xiomera would progress much more rapidly. The Empire already considered itself a wounded beast, after the war. Now, someone had just walked up and kicked the Empire while it was down. The further-wounded pride of ASI, and the fury of an insulted Empress, would soon rise in eastern Huenya like the sun itself - and just as hot.

And Calhualyana, seething in the Palace of Flowers, was already considering how to respond outside of the Empire itself.

[Lauchenoiria]

Nelichē sat at the kitchen table, waiting for Riley to return. Around her was a mess of destroyed objects, smashed shelves and ripped out wallpaper. She twirled the hammer she’d used to trash their apartment in her fingers as she waited for her roommate. The destruction had been a side effect of ensuring that no monitoring devices remained, and had also served as a way for the young Aurora to take out her anger at the situation. It wasn’t as if she’d be willing to share with her former classmate after the confrontation that was about to happen. Not after the conversation she just had with Huatli.

The lock to their apartment clicked and the door opened, Riley holding a bag of groceries as she stumbled into the apartment before freezing, dropping the bag and immediately drawing a knife as she saw the destruction covering the place. Glancing around quickly looking for those responsible, her eyes met Nelichē’s and the two Auroras stared at each other down the hallway for a few moments before either spoke.

“Sit,” Nelichē ordered. Riley didn’t move.

“What’s going on, Nelichē?” she asked warily, not liking the look of the situation. “Has someone broken in? Was it Kerlile?”

“SIT!” snarled Nelichē, slamming the hammer down and knocking a hole into the table. The other Aurora warily walked forward, hand still on her knife, and sat in the chair farthest from her roommate, watching her warily.

“Whatever’s going on, I can’t help if you don’t tell me…”

“Shut up, Riley,” hissed Nelichē. “You’ve done enough already. I don’t understand what possessed you to get involved in a treasonous plot in the first place, but every action you’ve taken since then has only made things worse. You have threatened the unity of two countries, you have threatened the maintenance of peace in multiple regions where war is common and has always been damaging. What I can’t decide is whether you’re incompetent, or if your mission is actually to destroy civilisation.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Yauhmi! I’m talking about Yauhmi! Who has done so much for us, who has allowed us choices for the first time in our lives and who we seem to have betrayed time and time again even as she sacrifices to help us.”

“Has something happened to Yauhmi?” Riley asked, alarmed.

“You really don’t pay attention, do you? Did you think your ill-considered mission was going to be a success? Did you really think you could pull that off safely on such short notice just to protect your treasonous little secret, a secret you endangered this country with when you told it to Huenya’s leaders? You, Riley, are a child, who thinks she can get away with anything so long as she just keeps lying and lying. Well, eventually someone gets hurt.”

“Nelichē, you seem upset, and I’m still not entirely sure what’s happening here.”

“Of course you don’t. So, I’ll spell it out for you. Fix this, Riley, because it’s your fault. Make sure that Huenya doesn’t take the blame for violating the Jinyu Agreement, and end this plot of Robinsons. Or I’ll do it for you. I will go to the press and tell them that Auroras carried out the Cauhloc assault, that we forced Huenya to help by kidnapping their princess. And I will go to the Council, and inform them of your plot, and if they execute me too then so be it. You have 48 hours to do something yourself or I’ll do it for you.”

Riley paled, staring at the other Aurora, blinking more rapidly than usual. “That’s a lie, we didn’t force Huenya to do anything! If you tell the world that, they’ll hate us even more than before, they’ll fear Auroras, they’ll go back to witch-hunts and conspiracies, and the only way your story would work was if Huenya suddenly publicly turned on us. And what exactly has happened to Yauhmi that you’re upset about anyway?”

“Fix it, or I will,” Nelichē said simply, staring unblinkingly at her fellow Aurora. “We’re retired Kerlian agents with specialised training. We’re not some special new species like our fans and enemies alike claim. Being an Aurora was a job, and one I’m happy to give up. Yauhmi helped me and I’ll help her. Regardless of what it takes.”

Nelichē stood, pulling a suitcase out from behind a smashed bookshelf, making sure that the other Kerlian clearly saw the pistol she had at her waist. She took the suitcase, wheeling it past Riley down the corridor to the door as the other woman stared. Nelichē nudged the dropped grocery bag out of the way, then pulled open the door and exited the apartment, leaving the former Eirian Aurora behind to think on her words, and her threat.

[Lauchenoiria]

Jointly written with Xiomera.

Today, 1st June
Morning in Kerlile, Evening in Xiomera

Empress Calhualyana was angry. Not just about the Cauhloc raid. But about who had done it.

I knew I was right about the Auroras all along. They have chosen to make themselves my enemy, out of their misguided loyalty to Yauhmi. They will regret that. It’s time.

She placed the call personally. “Good evening. This is the Empress of Xiomera. I need to speak with the Council on a matter of great urgency.”

The Council attendant on the other end of the call hadn't been expecting this, and was somewhat nervous as she typed a quick message to Councillor Chiu asking her if the Council would take the call as a group, while they were in their meeting. It took a few minutes of nervousness on the part of the attendant before she received an affirmative and was able to patch the call through to the Council Chambers. Once this was done, Councillor Chiu was the first to address the Empress.

"Empress Calhualyana," Chiu said once the call was connected. "You are on with seven out of ten members of the Council of Kerlile. To what do we owe the pleasure?"

”I wish I could say that this was a pleasant matter that I was bringing to you.” The Empress made sure that her voice conveyed tones of concern and friendship as she spoke. “There is information that has been brought to my attention by ASI that is of major significance to Kerlile. It concerns one of your own. Is Councillor Robinson there with you?”

In the Council Chamber, the seven present Councillors exchanged glances with each other. Chiu was the one who spoke. "Councillor Robinson is not present in the Chamber. Nor are Councillors Arnott or Hale."

Calhualyana raised a slight eyebrow at the list of Councillors present. Most of the reformers are not there. Interesting. And so much the better. “Very well. This information was uncovered during an investigation we were conducting of individuals connected to the former ruler here.” She carefully avoided saying Yauhmi’s name. “During our investigations, we uncovered information that proves that Councillor Robinson, and her family, have been leading a group of Auroras in support of DKS, with the intention of overthrowing you and establishing a democratic government. We have ample proof of this deception, should you desire it.”

The Councillors again exchanged glances. This time, it was Councillor Pierre who spoke. "Thank you for informing us of this, Empress. You are, alas, somewhat late to the party. I am happy to provide an explanation. On Saturday, I received a phone call..."

*

Last Saturday, 29th May
Afternoon in Kerlile

Nelichē had not heard from Riley Nelson. It seemed that her former classmate had failed to heed the ultimatum she had been given. It had been 48-hours; in fact it had been 52, but in spite of the (short) grace period, Yauhmi had not called Nelichē to tell her she was remaining in power. Nothing had changed, Huenya was still at risk. So, she dialled the phone number for Pauline Pierre she had acquired from other Auroras who were less out-of-favour with the Kerlian establishment. It was not long before the Councillor picked up.

“Nelichē, I’m guessing?” Councillor Pierre answered her own phone.

“I… you expected my call?” the Aurora responded, faltering. This was not part of the script she’d expected.

“Well, it was either you or Empress Calhualyana and I doubt she’d call from a mysterious withheld number.”

“Councillor?” Nelichē asked, confused.

“You’re calling me to tell me that Robinson is a traitor, that she betrayed her country to DKS and has Auroras working for her.”

“What? Yes, that was… did the Empress call already?”

“Not quite…” replied Pierre, as Nelichē clutched her phone tighter, afraid of what was happening back in the country of her birth.

*

The Day Before, 28th May
Morning in Kerlile, Evening in Huenya

Riley Nelson, panicking, who could think of no way out of the ultimatum given to her by Nelichē, called Councillor Robinson. It occurred to her as the phone rang that the Auroras’ mission to the Cauhloc had not only been a failure, it had damaged their cause far more than inaction would have. They’d been too late to prevent Tlalzixiūhxa from breaking and telling Calhualyana a secret that had been kept under wraps for generations, and she might already be too late to prevent what was inevitable - perhaps Calhualyana had called the council before Nelichē could even consider making her move.

“Good morning, Councillor Carmen Robinson’s office, how may I help you?”

“It’s a stormy day on a boat near the forgotten island at the edge of the gate to an afterlife not imagined in any texts,” Riley commended idly to the phone. On the other end, the person who had answered the phone would be reading the phrase in a guidebook on their desk, and probably freaking out when they realised what it meant.

“Please hold,” said the voice, quickly and nervously. Riley listened to some elevator music for thirty seconds or so, idly tapping her fingers even though she wanted to throw up. It could not be guaranteed that she wasn’t being watched.

“Identify yourself,” the phone said suddenly in Carmen Robinson’s voice.

“Aurora Rita, known as Riley Nelson,” she replied. “Councillor, we are all in grave danger.”

*

Saturday, 29th May
Morning in Kerlile (before Nelichē called)

Councillor Carmen Robinson was shown into the front room of the Pierre family mansion, as she tried desperately to keep her breathing steady. After yesterday’s call with Riley, yesterday’s warning and the threat of what Nelichē planned to do later today, she’d finally made her decision about how she would respond to her family’s deepest secret possibly coming to light. It was the most dangerous thing to happen to a Councillor in years, even counting the Hale fiasco, the most recent Presidential Selection, and the TRC added together.

“To what do I owe the pleasure?” Pierre greeted her guest as she entered, gesturing to a tea set in invitation. Robinson shook her hand, politely turning down the tea with a gesture. “I can’t imagine this is a social call, given the history between our families.”

“No,” Carmen swallowed, standing by the offered seat nervously, her hands clasped together as she tried to steady her breathing, suddenly terrified of what was about to occur. “This is… rather different. I don’t suppose you’ve heard from either Aurora Nelichē or Empress Calhualyana recently?”

“I have not,” Pierre replied, confused. “What’s this about, Carmen?”

"I have a confession. And first of all, I'd like to state that the others involved in this plot were forced into it against their wills by myself or my mother and as such are not responsible and should not be punished."

“That sounds ominous,” Pierre said, quaking her eyebrow and smirking a little. At the sight of Robinson’s facial expression, however, Pierre quickly sobered, and a look of fear and something approximating concern crossed her face. She didn’t like Robinson, but she’d never seen a look like this, and it frightened her.

“I…” Robinson began, “I… I can’t, oh Goddess. I’ve done something really terrible, Pauline. I’m going to die for it and I’m scared.”

“Hey,” Pierre gestured for Robinson to sit down and sat beside her. “Hey, things are changing here, even among my own family. What can you possibly have done that’s so bad?”

“Auroras,” blurted out Carmen, speaking quickly. “I had Auroras working with DKS to try and overthrow the Council and work against the other Auroras and try to create a democratic Kerlile after your grandmother killed my grandmother. My family’s worked with them all this time.”

Pauline Pierre recoiled in shock. Carmen shrunk into herself. Pierre stood, walking away until she stood against a pillar and held onto it. She stared at the other Councillor in disbelief, looking for the lies in her face but nobody would lie about this, and Robinson was telling the truth. Despite their rivalry, despite Pauline’s prior bloodlust and desire to have Robinson kicked off the Council, Pauline really, really wished this wasn’t happening.

"I don't understand, why are you confessing this now?" Pauline said, brows furrowed.

"The Auroras… I put them in even more danger than they already were. My own principles meant nothing, I betrayed them and I don't want others to suffer because of what I did. I know you care about them, the Auroras. These ones are just the same, they're still Aurora. Save them, Pauline, take my life but spare theirs."

"You came to me, instead of the whole Council… to save their lives," Pierre said softly, walking up to Carmen and looking her in the eyes. "Thank you," she said, smiling, before her face hardened. "It will not save your own."

Carmen looked down and closed her eyes. She barely heard Pierre call for someone and order them to call the police to arrest her. She focused on keeping her breathing steady as she waited, for all the minutes before they showed up and they handcuffed her. She didn't cry, she'd made her choice. She would sacrifice her own life to save others.

*

Today, 1st June

"So, Empress, we placed Robinson under arrest. We have yet to announce this publicly, as we wanted to track down those Auroras still in Kerlile who aided her. Alas, most of them seem to be hiding out in Huenya," Pierre finished her explanation of the events of the weekend.

”Yes, we know. They are the same ones who attacked the Cauhloc. It would seem we have a common enemy,” the Empress replied. She was disappointed that the secret was already out, but still determined to gain what advantage she could from it. “The Huenyans do seem to have quite the affinity for traitors.”

"We have yet to contact Huenya about the traitors hiding in their state, as we cannot be certain they would not warn any traitor Auroras still in our country," Councillor Natalia Hart interjected. "Yauhmi seems to attract Auroras like moths to a flame at times; I personally believe she has been turning them against us but that view is... disputed here."

”Yauhmi has, in my opinion, been doing that for quite some time. And now, she appears to be turning them against Xiomera as well. Her actions show no shame. In regards to this, one of the individuals who attacked the Cauhloc died during the raid. If you wish, I can arrange for her body to be returned to Kerlile. I regret that she lost her life due to the manipulations of others.”

"Are you aware of the identity of this Aurora?" Pierre asked, her stomach lurching at the thought of losing yet another one; even one who may have been a traitor.

"That's not the most important thing here, Councillor Pierre," Chiu chastised, before addressing the Empress once again. "We thank you for the offer, and will gladly take you up on it. We apologise for Huenya manipulating our citizens into carrying out these acts and we will be disciplining any Aurora involved should they return to the Matriarchy."

”No apology is needed; this is not your fault. I will be happy to ensure that she is returned to her homeland so that she can be laid to rest. I am glad that you are aware of this plot against you. Xiomera values the stability and peace of its true friends - as do I.” Calhualyana chose her words deliberately - Chiu’s words showed a seed of doubt towards Huenya had already been planted. The Empress was not at all above watering that seed, to make the Kerlians wonder who their friends really were.

"We thank you for the information. Is there anything further, as we were about to vote on loosening rationing restrictions on alcoholic beverages and I'm sure there are many in Kerlile keen to hear the result of this particular vote," chuckled Chiu.

Calhualyana laughed as well. “If the vote goes in favor of loosening those restrictions and you find yourself with a sudden need for greater supply, we’d be more than happy to help. But that is all I needed to bring to your attention. Thank you for your time, and hopefully we can speak again soon.”

"Thank you, Empress," Chiu said, before ending the call, and turning back to the Council. "Well, I think it's about time we contacted the media about Robinson, before anyone else who happens to have stumbled upon this information calls. We've arrested as many Auroras as we're going to find."

The other Councillors all nodded, apart from Georgiou, who was pretending to look at her phone, and Pierre, who had her eyes squeezed shut, finding this whole situation rather painful. Nonetheless, no objections were raised. The conflict could not be avoided; it was time to go public with the betrayal of one of their own.

[Lauchenoiria]

Prime Minister’s Office, Lauchenoiria

“A slow day, then?” Alvarez chuckled as her aide finished reading off the list of appointments. There was far less than usual, much to her surprise. It seemed that things were going smoothly for now, no immediate crises – at least none she intended to comment on – and therefore days in the office were easier than usual. “In that case, perhaps we should get to some of the non-urgent things I’ve been putting off.”

“Well, there’s Alex Marwick wanting to meet with both you and the Shuellian ambassador…”

“Definitely not. That can of worms can remain closed.”

“There’s also the WOE people’s lawyer who has been requesting meetings…”

“Would rather jump in a lake in Kerlile. Next.”

“Um, well, your… wife’s cousin, Finlay Hale. He came here last month and has been repeatedly requesting meetings.”

“That sounds… less painful than the other two. Or, well, at least less likely to cause some kind of media scandal. Fine, add him to the schedule, let’s get this over with.”

*

Five hours later…

Finlay Hale was exceptionally nervous when he was led into the Lauchenoirian Prime Minister’s office. Despite his (one) experience with diplomacy, and his multiple experiences with family and romantic crises, this wasn’t a meeting he thought he could ever be prepared for. So much rested on it, and yet there was no way to force the issue. Emotions would play out how they’d play out, regardless of practical consequences.

“Mr Hale, a pleasure,” Josephine said, though her smile didn’t meet her eyes. They shook hands and she gestured for him to take a seat opposite her at her desk. “How can I help you?”

“It is not me who needs help, Prime Minister,” Finlay smiled sadly. “It is my cousin, Councillor Hale.”

At the mention of Jennifer’s title, the Prime Minister flinched, unable to control it. There was so much trauma for her in the story of how Jennifer took her position on the Council and hearing the title was often a little much. “And how can I help the Councillor?”

“There is no easy way to say this, and it’s not my place, but she can’t leave Kerlile and you don’t… look, Jennifer is still in love with you. Deeply, wholly, unable to get over it and unwilling to consider the option. She wants to be here with you far more than she wants to do anything for Kerlile. But she can’t. And that’s hurting her. And so, she won’t do anything, she won’t even get out of bed and it’s a problem. She needs to attend votes, or the reformists will lose their advantage and Kerlile will slip back into the old ways, and so many gains we’ve worked for will be lost. You’re the only person who can snap her out of it!”

Josephine stared at the Kerlian man for a few moments, her expression unreadable. Then she turned away, looking down at some paperwork. “I’m sorry, I can’t help you. Thank you for coming to see me, my assistant will show you out.”

“Wait!” he pleaded. “Look, I know a lot of things happened, but she never, ever meant to hurt you. She was trying to protect you!”

“Thank you for coming, Mr Hale,” Josephine said, her tone turning frosty, “but I was never in love with Jennifer Hale. I was in love with someone who never existed, Sonja Viratnen.”

And Finlay just… snapped. It wasn’t something Kerlian men did often, mostly because it would lead to execution for showing “violent patriarchal tendencies”. But suddenly he couldn’t hold it in any more.

“You don’t get it! If she’d told you, if you’d known they’d have killed you! If they’d found her before her sister died, they’d have killed both of you. They’d have hunted you down and tortured you to death. You forget she was wanted for treason. She loved you, more than she ever loved anyone else and she will never love anyone else the same way! She lied once to protect you. Once! And you can’t forgive that?”

“What the hell is wrong with you?” he continued. “When Jennifer ended up in a bad situation, she tried to make life better for others through her own pain! But you? You let fear rule you, you do whatever it takes to keep power and you will sacrifice all your principles. Jennifer never deserved you! I don’t see how he can love someone so selfish, so power-hungry, so determined to protect her own position she will sell her own people out over and over because of her own fear!”

“That’s enough, Mr Hale,” snapped Alvarez. But he wasn’t done.

“Jennifer doesn’t belong on the Council! It shouldn’t exist! She’s done wonders with what little power she could wield but it’ll never be enough. Arnott just wanted power, Georgiou just wants foreign entertainment, Robinson supports reform to carry on her family feud. But Jennifer wants to build a better world! She’s a thousand times better than them. But you? You’re just like them, you care more about power than about love. You do not deserve my cousin.”

“Get out.”

“Sonja was REAL. Sonja was more damned real than Jennifer Hale! Someone’s birth name, their legal identity is not the real them. The way she loved you, THAT was real. The way she acted then, that was real. The Councillor is not real, the Councillor is a lie that Kerlile built because they needed goddamn unity to show off to the world. Sonja was real, her love for you was real, and you can’t recognise that! You’re a lost cause, you deserve nothing, you power-hungry thief!”

“Security!” yelled Alvarez and immediately the door burst open revealing two Secret Service agents waiting outside.

“I’m leaving!” Finlay yelled as they moved to grab him. “I’m leaving!” He raised his arms and turned away from the Prime Minister, storming into the corridor and away from the office.

“Make sure he exits the building,” Alvarez ordered the agents, as she glared after the retreating man. But inside, she was shaking, a little worm of doubt crawling through her mind as his words ran through it.

[Xiomera]

(Joint post with Lauchenoiria)

May 29th, Palace of Flowers

Empress Calhualyana calmly sat on the Obsidian Throne, waiting. The debacle at the Cauhloc had displeased her greatly, but she was hoping that this visit would improve her mood about that matter.

Her steward Xiuhcatli soon walked into the Throne Room, giving Calhualyana a short bow. “Your Majesty, Mariya Adema has arrived, with her…delivery she promised.” Filing in behind Xiuhcatli were an elite set of palace guards. Many palace guards. They took up protective positions behind the Empress, and on either side of her.

Calhualyana raised an eyebrow slightly at the increased security, before gesturing for Xiuhcatli to show Mariya in.

Mariya Adema was holding the end of a chain, pulling it the way one might walk a dog. Yet more guards, this time from the Cauhloc (though not those who were on duty during the break-in) accompanied her, pushing the heavily restrained human she was dragging behind her. On said human's head was a large ribbon tied into a bow as one might place on a birthday present.

"Your Majesty, I brought you a present," Mariya greeted the Empress, bowing as she spoke. "This individual is an Aurora."

For a moment, the Empress was silent. Then she began to laugh. The sound of pure pleasure filled the Throne Room, as Calhualyana stepped down from the Obsidian Throne.

“Ah, Mariya, you have outdone yourself this time,” she said. “You have excellent taste in presents. This redeems the disaster at the Cauhloc, at least somewhat.”

Calhualyana advanced until she was looking the Aurora in the eyes. “Are you enjoying your visit to Xiomera? Do you like our hospitality? You’re about to get quite a bit more of it.”

The Empress turned to Mariya, giving her a warm smile. “I assume you have plans for your prize.”

The Aurora glared back at the Empress with pure fury in her eyes, not that much else of her was visible. She was gagged, her arms bound behind her back, her ankles cuffed to each other and to top it off, chains wrapped around her entire body. A muffled hissing sound came from under the gag.

"Of course, Empress," Mariya smiled, triumphant. "She hasn't said anything yet, but she will. She will tell me everything."

”Oh, I have no doubt about that,” the Empress said, circling the Aurora like a jaguar stalking its prey. “You should know, Mariya has already broken one Aurora, a task we had thought impossible,” Calhualyana said in a pleasant tone to the prisoner. “You’ll be no different. You will tell us everything, indeed. Where your fellow conspirators are hiding, why you came here, who the rest of you are and if you have further hostile intent against my Empire. You will keep nothing from us, no matter how hard you try.”

Calhualyana paused in front of the Aurora once more. “And when you are done telling us what we want to know, you’ll plead for mercy. If your answers please me enough, you might even get it. Perhaps.”

Calhualyana turned back to Mariya. “You’ve done very well. I will see to it that you receive a suitable reward for your achievement. If there’s something specific you wish, you are free to ask for it. This is something worthy of recognition.”

"My work is its own reward," Mariya replied, genuine in her love of what she does. Behind her, the Aurora made some noises like she was trying to say something through her gag. Mariya glanced at her and smirked. The Aurora glared at Mariya and pulled against the chain, but immediately two guards leapt forward and pulled her back.

”I admire your devotion to the work. It is a trait I shared during my time in ASI. But in Xiomera, success is always properly rewarded. I’ll be sure to think of a suitable present of my own to exchange with you, for such a fine prize. Perhaps a new set of top-notch equipment to work with,” Calhualyana mused. “Or a bigger lab. Perhaps both. I do plan to have some new construction done for interrogation purposes.”

When the Aurora tried to pull free from her restraints, the Empress laughed once more. “You have some fight in you, unlike the last Aurora we broke. That is perfect. It’s always more fun breaking someone who puts up a fight.” Calhualyana smiled again, this time at the Aurora. It was not a pleasant smile. “I look forward to seeing what information you can gain from this prize, Mariya.”

The Aurora appeared to take a deep breath. She recognised that no amount of struggle would free her, it would only deplete her energy. She stared blankly at the Empress but glared in fury at Mariya.

For her part, Mariya smirked and stepped towards the Aurora, reaching out to run her sharp fingernail across the Aurora's forehead, drawing blood. The Aurora didn't even blink. Mariya licked her finger and turned back to the Empress.

"My research into the nightmare serum has, unfortunately, ground to a halt. I could do with more test subjects, especially cooperative ones. I need people who will answer me honestly after I make them cry," Mariya said, as if commenting on the weather.

”Hmm. There are the round-ups we did of the Unificationists during the recent raids,” the Empress said, referring to members of the Unification Party. “Feel free to pull from that detainee pool as needed. My goal is to break them from their silly flirtation with the opposition; perhaps your efforts can encourage them in that regard. They tend to be a bit soft, so I doubt they will be able to resist or deceive you for long.”

"Of course, Your Majesty," Mariya nodded. "I am only sorry that I did not manage to apprehend more of the Auroras. Those things are barely human, they move so fast."

”Capturing even one Aurora is an impressive feat, so you need not apologize. You’ve done well. In fact, some of the others working for ASI could do well to learn from your example,” the Empress replied, making sure her voice carried to the guards from the Cauhloc. Calhualyana was still quite displeased with ASI’s guards and was not afraid to make that displeasure known.

"Oh, I do have one more request..." Mariya replied, glancing at the guards with a smug expression. "The dead one. The Aurora. May I study her body?"

”Of course. Just be careful not to do any permanent damage to it. I promised the Kerlians I would send the body back to them, to make the Council think I am their benefactor. The body needs to appear intact, at least, when I do so.”

"Understood," nodded Mariya. "That won't be a problem. I just want to check they don't have any, well, additions to what should be in a normal human body. You never know!"

”Indeed, and if there are any….insights that can be gleaned from the body and this living example which we can use to improve Imperial soldiers and security personnel, I would be quite interested in that,” the Empress replied with a thoughtful tone. “You are free to conduct any research you see fit on this one,” she added, waving her hand at the chained Aurora. “She’s not going back to Kerlile, unlike her compatriot.”

The chained Aurora did not struggle this time, merely maintained her glare at the Empress and her torturer. She showed no fear at either the prospect of Mariya carrying out an autopsy on Lily's body... or of what Mariya could possibly do to her.

Calhualyana noticed the fearless glare, and simply chuckled once more. So proud. So unwilling to show fear. When this one breaks, it will be very interesting indeed. “Go ahead and return to the Cauhloc and begin your work,” she said to Mariya. “Keep me posted on your progress. I will be following this one’s trajectory with close interest. I may even break out some popcorn.”

The Aurora struggled against her gag once more, seeming desperate to say something but Mariya gestured for the guards to begin dragging her away while Mariya turned back to Calhualyana.

"I'm deeply grateful for this opportunity, Your Majesty," Mariya said, bowing again. "I will not let you down."

”I know you won’t,” Calhualyana replied.

[Lauchenoiria]

Moore Residence, Buttercity Suburbs, Lauchenoiria
Late evening

Laura Moore and her husband Felipe sat on different couches in their living room, both holding cups of decaf tea and relaxing now that the kids were in bed. They sat in silence, not really speaking much – since the war, they’d slowly but surely drifted apart, the intimacy of their relationship lessened by the differing traumas both had faced three years ago, and the resulting outcomes. They wanted to work things out, but neither of them consciously knew what the problem was.

The sound of the doorbell interrupted the silence. Felipe got up to answer the door, as was custom given how often delivery people and cold callers would get flustered at the sight of Laura. He padded down the corridor, avoiding the creaky floorboard to not wake up the children, unlocked the door and pulled it open slightly to see who was outside. Then he stopped, staring and turned back around to where Laura had followed him into the hallway.

“I think it’s for you,” he said, stepping back towards the staircase as if he wanted to quickly get out of the way of whatever was about to happen.

Curious, Laura opened the door wider and then stopped to stare herself as she saw the new Prime Minister, Josephine Alvarez, on her doorstep with a number of secret service agents, some of whom she vaguely recognised from her own time in office.

“Hi Laura,” Alvarez said. “May I come in?”

“Um, sure?” Laura said, opening the door wider and stepping back. She had her own government-provided security, given everything, so her property was already protected meaning the accompanying agents seemed content to wait outside. Felipe had vanished upstairs out of the way as Laura led Josephine to her living room. “Please,” she gestured to an armchair. “Can I get you anything?”

“No, that’s okay. I just needed… well, I need some advice,” confessed Alvarez, as she sat down on the chair slumping forward a little. “I know we didn’t end things on the best of terms during the 2019 election, but we used to be on the same page about things, and you have experience I lack. I think I’ve messed up, Laura.”

“Well I’m not going to pretend I agree with every decision you’ve made,” Laura said frankly, “but I know how hard it is, and how easy it is for one mistake to derail everything. So why don’t you start by telling me exactly what it is you think you’ve messed up?”

So, Alvarez did. She started with the problems she’d inherited from Noguera’s provisional post-war government such as the Shuellian aid and strings attached, the conspiracy theories about Sanctarian, or Skodenian, or Shuellian, or Kerlian occupation (they varied, the only common theme was that Lauchenoiria was someone’s secret colony), the mess of the Aurora affair, the WOE protests, Yauhmi and Jennifer Hale. How every day there was a new crisis and everything she did seemed to make it worse. How she didn’t know how Laura had ever managed to do this. And when she was finished, she was in tears.

“Hey, Josephine,” Laura said, sitting next to the other woman, putting her arm around her. “It’s okay, we can fix this.”

“I’m not sure how,” sobbed Alvarez.

“First, let’s talk about Shuell and international relations. One of your main problems here is that you’ve been too reactive to what’s happening abroad. You’re letting the actions of foreign governments dictate what you do, not in the way the conspiracy theorists say, but in the way you react without first setting your own agenda. Look at what benefits we get from a trade deal with Shuell and set terms. Don’t let them write the thing uncontested just because they gave us a little crisis aid.”

“It’s not just Shuell though,” Josephine wiped a residual tear from her eyes and shifted to face Moore. “This situation with Huenya and Xiomera is a mess and I just don’t know what to do given the circumstances.”

“Huenya is the obvious ally here, but you say Pavía has issues? I know you and Yauhmi have some kind of history, you… forgive me for saying, but you seem frightened of her. She’s no longer in power, though. I believe you when you say Calhualyana is saying the right things but I’d be sceptical of her intentions. Everyone wants something. Except you, it seems. And therein lies the source of your trouble – you haven’t decided what you want.”

Alvarez was quiet for a few moments, thinking. Then she turned back to Moore with yet another question. “What about WOE? They were escalating things in a really concerning way, but I can’t help but feel we’re in bad company the way we’ve treated them. But at the same time, the helicopter incident is terrorism.”

“Is it? They were volunteering with Milinticans, who were officially at war. Yes, they were our citizens but we don’t technically ban our citizens from fighting for foreign forces. What they did wasn’t a war crime, just a normal act of war and they were operating under the command of another power. That’s not our problem. Your instinct is right, it looks bad to lock them up for the non-violent stuff they were doing here. I’d urge you to consider rescinding the ban on the group and let them go, if you want these rumours about you being a wannabe dictator to stop.”

“I get that, it’s just that Sandra says…”

“Let me stop you right there,” Laura interrupted. “Why is the Foreign Minister making domestic justice decisions? And why is the Foreign Minister cosying up to dictators at the expense of our relations with democratic states? You’ve held that position before, you know what the role entails. I’d take a good long look at why Pavía has so much power, and what she’s using it for. And if you don’t like what you see, perhaps consider a reshuffle.”

Josephine paused, then spoke quickly, not making eye contact. “Is it too late? I know what people say about me, I’ve made so many mistakes. Is it too late to fix things or should I just resign so someone less tainted can take the helm?”

“It’s not too late,” Moore replied firmly. “I know you can redeem yourself, these issues are not insurmountable but you need to make a choice. You need to decide if you’re going to stick to your principles, set your own agenda and try to make things better… or if you’re going to keep reacting to crises, letting others dictate what you do and letting certain people have undue influence over you.”

“It’s just that…” Josephine sighed. “I feel like a different person since the war. Like everything good about me was just sucked out and destroyed. I doubt everything about the past and the future, and I don’t know what to do. Maybe Finlay was right.”

“Finlay?”

“Finlay Hale, Jennifer’s cousin. He said I didn’t deserve her.”

“I don’t think he gets to decide that,” Laura pointed out. “Only she gets to decide that, and Sonja or Jennifer, whoever she is, clearly chose you. It’s the worst kept secret in the world that she’s still in love with you. May I ask, how do you feel about her, now that time has passed?”

“I… I miss Sonja,” confessed Alvarez. “I just don’t know if she ever existed. Was it just a fake name or was it an entirely fake person? How can I tell the difference when everything has changed and the world will never be the same again?”

“I don’t know, Josephine. I never knew her as well as you did. My advice to you would be this: listen to your heart. It will tell you how you feel about Sonja, about Jennifer, and all of this. If you want to give her a second chance, only you can make that decision. I know this is a lot, it’s hard and you didn’t expect any of this. I can only ask that you really, truly think about what you want. Only then can you make the necessary changes.”

As Alvarez thanked Moore for speaking with her, especially when she showed up late at night uninvited, and took her leave of the Moore house, she was thinking a lot about what Laura had said. It was true that Alvarez had been far too reactive in her policy agenda, allowing events to overtake her. As for Jennifer… she didn’t know what to feel. But as the car drove back to her own residence, she tried listening to her heart about all of this, and came to one very solid conclusion. An announcement would be made tomorrow.

[Lauchenoiria]

Royal Palace, Zongongia
5am, 8th July 2021

Natasha Robinson sat in the gardens, a blanket pulled around her shoulders to keep her warm against the cold early morning breeze. She couldn’t sleep without medicinal help these days, and she hated taking the pills. Every time she was asleep she dreamed she was with her mother in a Kerlian prison and about to die. She needed to keep a bucket by her bed for the vomit when she woke up. So rather than sleep, she would wander the gardens at night, the cold distracting her from her fear for her mother.

“You’re going to get hypothermia, you know,” came a voice from behind her and she jumped, pulling the tiny knife she carried and pointing it at her would-be attacker.

Prince Kristofer, second-in-line to the Zonongian throne stood behind her, a grin spreading across his face as he eyed the little weapon. “I’d recommend putting that away before the guards all rush in here,” he suggested.

Blushing, Natasha tucked the knife away and sat back down on the rock she’d been using as a chair before his appearance. “I would rather die at the hand of the cold than the hand of my country’s government,” she replied. He sat down next to her on the adjacent rock and turned to her, the grin still on his face.

“See, I don’t think you want to die at all,” he said. “Else you wouldn’t be so afraid of them. If it matters, you’re safe here. Zongongia is a mountainous country; we’re difficult to invade and this place was built back when playing capture-the-castle was every noble’s favourite activity.”

He gestured at the palace grounds, which were built atop centuries of Zongongian royal castles. They were high in the mountains, hence the cold wind that permeated the palace, but Natasha couldn’t deny that it would be a difficult location to attack. Even a single assassin would struggle to sneak in; every approach was easily monitored and there was only one road up to the palace. If she had to hide from the Council of Kerlile, it was a good choice of location. Still.

“If I go back to Kerlile they’ll kill me,” she told the Prince without moving or looking at him. “But that’s not what I’m worried about. It’s easy to not go to Kerlile; most people have done it for a century. I do not want them to execute my mother; I do not want to be alone and responsible for my little sister; I do not want to be Councillor-in-exile and expected to do something about this whole mess. Things were supposed to be better now.”

“Ah,” sighed Kristofer, “people always say that, but it is rarely true. We’ve spent the last few decades here in relative isolation, keeping out of our neighbour’s squabbles, but in September we have elections and following that scandal it looks like the parties who wish to end that state of affairs will have a landslide. Unlike in your Kerlile, where the Council rules, my grandfather can’t actually do anything. So, we’re beholden to the whims of the people, and things will always change. For better or for worse.”

“I actually think democracy is a good thing, your Highness,” retorted Natasha, folding her arms and turning to look at him. “The people have a right to choose their own leaders, and I was hoping that one day soon Kerlians would have that opportunity. Don’t you dare tell me you want more power for your monarchy!”

The Prince’s grin grew even wider. “Knew I could make you react. No, I don’t want more power, that just sounds stressful. But it strikes me that your Kerlile’s reform lasted all of five minutes before the bad Councillors clamped down again. If you really want to change things there, then you might have to actually do something, as you so succinctly expressed disdain for earlier.”

“I’m not going to start a civil war in Kerlile,” she said primly, frowning. “War does not solve anything. And if you think I am going to ally with you if your wish is to invade Kerlile, you can think again. I will not partake in such an enterprise.”

“Always so quick to accuse others of imperial ambitions,” he chuckled. “Trust me, we’re perfectly content with our little corner of the world. Everywhere else is far too chaotic. Well, I suppose if Lauchenoiria was to declare war on us we might well take back that little bit of our territory they stole a few centuries ago,” he teased.

Natasha rolled her eyes. “I haven’t spent much time around males before this. Are you all so insufferable or is that only princes?”

“Ah, of course, you grew up in Kerlile. You have not been exposed to the wonder of interaction between the sexes,” he grinned, then reached out and took her hand, pulling her to her feet. “Perhaps I can teach you.”

She pulled her hand out of his and stepped back. “We are cousins, Your Highness. Any such relations between us would be inappropriate.”

“We’re fourth cousins at best,” he snorted in response. “My parents were third cousins; closer than you and I. It’s just the way things are here. We’re not Kerlile.”

“I’m fairly certain that Kerlile is, for once, the more normative society in this regard,” Natasha remarked. “I have studied other cultures and I’m fairly certain that your issue is what they refer to as ‘inbreeding’ and was a major problem amongst nobility in feudal times. Apparently stretching to today.”

“Ah, well, when royalty marries outside of the nobility, it causes a scandal,” he grinned at her. “As your ancestors knew fine well.”

It was a mistake. Natasha immediately closed off, picking up her blanket and turning away from him. Before, she had been teasing him, friendly banter, but she didn’t take well to mentions of her great-great-grandmother’s exile. The fact that Prince Kristofer thought it an appropriate topic to joke about, rather than a racist miscarriage of justice that the Zongongian royals should be apologising for, said much about him. Natasha was fooling herself if she considered for a moment he was anything better than his own forebears.

“You’re right, I’m cold,” Natasha said flatly. “Goodnight, Prince.”

Then she turned on her heels and stalked back towards the entrance of the guest residential quarters as Kristofer realised what he’d said and kicked himself, calling after her to no avail. The Prince groaned and put his head in his hands. He liked Natasha Robinson; she was the only girl he knew who didn’t fawn over him and come across as fake. But Natasha Robinson was also an enigma, and one he was utterly failing to understand.