I roll my eyes. “I’ll just find someone else to take me to Eurek—”
“Don’t you care what happens to her?” Gamba’s dark face cracks with desperation, and it’s the first time I see a bit of myself in her. She reminds me of how protective I used to feel about my family.
Back when I still had a family to protect.
“Once I know the situation, I’ll figure out what to do about Mom,” I say to end our standoff. “Now take me to General Eurek and stop asking questions.”
Gamba doesn’t argue as she leads me up the hill into the first fortress, which isn’t at all what I expected. We enter a massive chamber with a holographic carousel of the cosmos, where people from every House are spaced out and Centered. It’s a massive communal reading room.
We edge around the silent crowd and descend a stone staircase into a meeting space. Weapons of every variety line the walls, like an art exhibit or a military museum, and there’s a massive rectangular table where half a dozen Majors are gathered. As soon as we enter, General Eurek’s strong voice greets me.
“Welcome to Phaet, Wandering Star.”
The Guardian of Aries is decked in bloodred military garb, and as he marches over, I can’t help admiring his towering stature and muscular frame. We trade the hand touch, and I say, “Thank you, General.”
The Majors all stand up and salute me.
“Wandering Star,” says the soldier with the most stripes on his sleeve. “We wanted to commend you for the bravery and sacrifice you showed on Pisces. When faced with the opportunity to take out the enemy’s General, even though guns were pointed at you, you took the shot. That takes guts of steel.”
“Indeed,” says Eurek good-naturedly. “By taking out the heart of their operation, you found their place of vulnerability and helped us hold on to Ophiuchus—a definite combat advantage.”
I’ve no idea what to say to any of this, so I just stick with, “Thank you.”
“I thought you would be coming by later with Hysan,” the Guardian goes on, “but I can summon the senior officers now if you’d—”
“I’d rather speak with you alone.”
He nods and jerks his chin toward the door, and all six Majors file out. I look to Gamba, and she follows them, shutting the door behind her.
“I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m eager to know what’s been going on.”
“I would expect no less from you,” says Eurek, his orange-red eyes glowing like embers. “Aquarius and his Tomorrow Party have vanished. We’ve been unable to locate their base of operations, yet we do have Zodai who’ve infiltrated their ranks and have been reporting back to us when they can. Unfortunately, none have breached his inner circle yet, so we know nothing of value.”
“So we don’t know that he’s on House Leo?”
Eurek’s black skin pales as he’s caught off guard, and his voice drops several decibels.
“He—he is our primary target, Wandering Star,” he says apologetically. “I’m sorry for the subterfuge, but please understand that we can’t go there without a real plan, and at the moment we don’t have one. He can foresee anything we try, so we have to be very careful. We can’t risk the lives of our troops until we have a trained army that has a chance of defeating him—no matter how much his hostages may mean to us.”
I square my shoulders and make my voice as strong as I can. “General, I sacrificed my life to kill Aquarius. I’m the only one who’s come close to destroying him. Do you really think I would do anything to jeopardize the Zodiac’s survival?”
“No,” he says quickly, tipping his head down a fraction. “I apologize for making assumptions, but your friend Hysan—”
“The Libran has developed feelings for me, so his concern colors his logic.”
It’s amazing how easy it is to say the words—to betray Hysan. Now I understand how he’s been able to lie to me again and again and again. It’s really not that difficult, if you can just set aside your emotions.
“I had no idea,” says Eurek, frowning. “Thank you for telling me.”
“Furthermore,” I go on, my voice gaining gravity, “he is not a Guardian and does not outrank me.” If Hysan won’t own the title, then he doesn’t get the power that comes with it.
Eurek nods and says, “Affirmative.”
Hoping that his guard will have weakened now that he’s feeling sorry, I ask, “Could you tell me about the Everblaze?”
He seems relieved for the change of subject. “Of course. It’s existed since before Phaet was oxygenated because the flames aren’t fire but Psynergy—the purest concentration you’ll ever come across. It’s said that if you can find your Center within the Everblaze, you’ll be rewarded with a rare vision that most mortals couldn’t See. Few people through history have experienced it because the Psynergy is so powerful that when you try to channel it by Centering, it scorches like real fire. That’s why we burn our fallen warriors’ bodies there: to free their souls’ Psynergy and release it to Empyrean. It’s a festival called the Ascension, and the shell that remains is later burned to ashes.”
I nod as more pieces of my plan come together. “And the wall of Black Truth—does it really protect The Bellow?”
“We believe the stars would never allow anyone through who means us harm,” he says without hesitation.
Careful to keep my voice neutral so I don’t sound judgmental, I ask, “General, have you been on this planet the whole time you’ve been under house arrest?”
He nods. “Affirmative. Only the Zodai of our House know this planet is habitable. Our people have so thoroughly destroyed themselves on Phaetonis that the vast majority would never have the means to travel off-planet. The Bellow and the Zodai who guard it have a fierce reputation that people fear, so most won’t come near here. We always transport prisoners ourselves.”
The door suddenly swings open, and Hysan strides into the room with Pandora in tow. She bows to me in her aqua Elder uniform, her hair pulled away from her amethyst eyes.
“Wandering Star, General,” says Hysan by way of greeting, his green gaze locking on mine. “I thought you were going to send for me when you were ready to meet.”
“I decided a one-on-one meeting would be best.”
“Any word from Lord Neith?” the Ariean Guardian asks Hysan, his deep voice sharp. The question sounds almost like a challenge, and Hysan wrinkles his brow as he registers the tension in Eurek’s tone.
“He’s with a team of trained Knights investigating a potential Marad base off a tip we received. The plan is for him to check in when he’s at a safe communication point.”
“As soon as you hear from him, let him know I’d like a word,” says Eurek without offering additional details.
“I’ll pass it along,” says Hysan politely, and then he faces me again, and I quickly turn back to Eurek.
“General, I’d like to give my brother the proper passing rites.” Something lodges in my throat and I swallow twice, but the obstruction won’t budge. “I—I’d like to celebrate the Ascension,” I say thickly.