I hadn't been in there long, enough to get warmed up and do a few slow sequences until they flowed together like water, before I heard the door open."Welcome back to the realm of fantasy," I said, delighted –
But it was Vivith standing in the doorway, not Araxis.In the bright lights of the training room and on even ground, I could get a much better look at them, stationed just inside of the door.Vivith was tall enough that, if they ever straightened to their full height from the hunched posture that seemed to be their default, I suspected they'd be a few inches taller than I was.I finished the arc of my swords, dropping them to my sides.Vivith's dark eyes were like holes in the white of their face, black crest like a smear of charcoal dripping down their head and back.They were dressed in shapeless clothes, like a cloud of smoke.
"I thought I might find you alone, Sashen Solar."Vivith's voice was raspy.They closed the doorto the training roomfirmly, and stepped toward me.Something about their posture made my skin prickle with discomfort, as if they were a spider; their limbs were long and spindly, their body thin.I had a hard time believing that Vivith and Araxis were siblings: he was solid and brimming with life; Vivith made me think uncomfortably of death.
"Araxis is coming down soon."Ifoughtthe urge to stumble back as Vivith drew near, their bony shoulders hunched forward.I could see now that their eyes were in line with my own, even with their curled-inward posture.Theyweretall, and I bet they were whipcord strong.
"Hm."They stepped right up to me, bare feet so close that the claws at the tip of each toe nearly pricked the leather of my boots.I watched as their stare raked over me, settling on the mark Araxis had left at my neck, eyes narrowing, their mouth settling into a little twist of disdain."We draw near to the Thenat cluster.How does this make you feel?"
My stomachclenched."Uh," I started."Well, it's been a nice trip.I'll be sad when it's over."
"What brings you to the cluster?"
Fuck, really?I couldn't take this last day – this one last day – to justnotthink about my impending doom?To keep my secrets to myself?Somehow, I didn't think my usual deflection tricks – charming smile, play dumb, flirt, if all else fails stick your hand down their pants – would work on Vivith.
"Work."I twisted my wrist, blade a comforting weight in my hand.Maybe if I flirted innotVivith's direction, that might do… something?So I added, with a sharp grin, "Trip's been apleasurethough."
Vivith's face was an unmoving white mask, their lips narrowing."What are your intentions with Araxis?"
Oh, it was a conversation likethat.I could handle that much."We're just having a good time together," I said carefully."He and I have already talked about it.You don't need to worry – we understand each other."
Their eyes narrowed to black slits."I am certain you believe you understand each other, yes.Has he told you of the threat the children face?"
I stared at them,desperatelytrying to keep track of what the hell was going on here,to follow the thread of their logic."Yeah, he has.It's fucked up."Some small measure of tact, the holdover of a lifetime spent working withthe public, kept me from adding,And that's thanks to you, Vivith.The words tasted like blood as I bit them back.
"Yes," Vivith sneered, "It isfucked up.And we are close to correcting this situation – so close, and yet here you are, a distraction.Are you here to help or to hinder?"
"Withwhat?"I asked, baffled."Getting you back in the Concord?I don't know how I could either help orhinder.Come on, I'm a dancer from a den.That's it."
In a flash of movement, they surged forward, grasping my sweater in their fist so that I couldn't jerk back.Their eyes were flat, reflecting nothing."Did she send you to worsen his odds, hm?Or will you whisper sweet secrets into his ears that help him strike true?What is yourpurpose, Sashen Solar?What game is it that you play?"
I took a half-step backwards, but Vivith's grip tightened.If I had any kind of fighter's instinct, I might have remembered that I was holding my own blades – sharp and scary enough to make them back off.But I was a dancer and my swords were my props.I dropped them, and they clattered to the floor by our feet.
"Itoldhim you were a mistake the moment I laid eyes on you," they hissed, face leaning in close to mine, sharp teeth bared."And not only have youbroughtnothing, you havedistractedhim.He should be planning, preparing, and instead heswoons, as if he has no responsibilities before him.As if our lives do not hang in the balance."
"Let me go," I saidbreathlessly, fear a cold trickle down my back.One hand jerked up and caught Vivith's thin wrist; their tendons were hard under my palm, like steel cords.
"What is yourintention, Sashen Solar?"It was a growl, and I couldn't get away.
"Vivith?"Araxis's voice called across the room.At once, Vivith's white hand dropped my sweater, and I stumbled back as they turned and looked at Araxis, who stood in the doorway.
As I righted myself, I expected him to look confused.I didn't expect him to look stricken.
"It is time, I think, that the three of us sat down," Vivith said, their tone perfectly even now.Theyclenchedand unclenchedthe fist that had held mebeforegivingthat hand the tiniest shake, as if they'd touched something unpleasant."There is much to do before tomorrow, Araxis.Let us take tea in the dining room.I expect both of you soon."And then, with the coiled power of a predator, Vivith stalked back across the room and brushed hard against Araxis beforethey disappeared into the cargo bay beyond.I caught the hiss of words in abayan, and Araxis paled.
"What the fuck was that?"I asked, my voice the only sound in the wide room.
Araxis whined, a thin sound breaking free from his throat."Before we join Vivith… I should explain."
"And what," I continued, louder despite myself, anger creeping in at the edges, "thefuckdoes it have to do with the kids?And why did they think I couldhelp– or that I was here to, I don't know, put your lives at risk?Araxis, I'dneverdo that."
Araxis was standing near the door, hovering, unable to move into this familiar space where we'd spent nearly two weeks dancing together, drawing closer and closer on our collision course.Except now, I didn't know why we'd collided and what it all meant, so instead I grabbed my swords and closed the space between us.He wasn't looking at me, stare fixed on a distant corner of the room, chin up – proud."Araxis,"I said, sharper than I meant.
He flinched, and then he turned to face me."We've prepared a petition for the Hall of Records to restore our name, which will mean that, retroactively, the children are valid members of Creche Thiel.There will be a fine of course, but with our name restored, they will no longer be skoshas, and we will be able to begin restoring our house to its proper place.Its proper status."He spoke calmly, insistently – but there was a veneer of artifice, as though this were a speech he'd practiced.
I suppose, looking back, it was.Who knows when he meant to deliver it to me, but it certainly wasn't in that room at that moment.But needs must, and Vivith excels at bringing things to a head.
Then, it barely registered."So?What could thatpossiblyhave to do with me?"
