Burn Bright

When Rollo arrived at Vank the three caught the next kar on the Illi line. He sat in front of them and hung over the seat the way Krista-belle had done before, chattering to Suki about Goa and the White Wings, while the kar creaked along its cables like a tired beast.

Retra stared out, noticing how Ixion’s lights seemed a little dimmer and the dark seemed lighter. This must be what Kero meant by Early-Eve.

‘What causes the ever-night?’ she asked, interrupting them.

Rollo stopped short and stared at her. ‘The anomaly, of course.’

‘What in Stra’ is an anomaly? asked Suki.

‘The Golden Spiral. When we crossed into it on the barge, the dark came. It’s some kind of disturbance in the normal way of things. The Grave Council have been studying it for years without an answer, so they call it an anomaly. It’s just another name for something abnormal.’

‘In Stra’ha we call it the Blur. Have you ever had spots floating across your eyes when you stared at the sky?’

Rollo nodded.

‘It’s like one of those. A dark spot in front of what you see,’ she said.

‘Does that mean it’s everlasting?’ Retra wanted to know.

‘Who cares?’ said Suki. ‘It’s not like we’ll be here forever. One day we’ll be withdrawn to another place.’

Retra hunched her shoulders at that and stared back out the window. She would be gone before then.