Page 172 of GlitchBorn Heart

Lyra folds her arms. “Whoever she is, she’s not just a date.” We all watch as the mystery woman drapes her arm around him and whispers into his ear. He responds with a nefarious grin. “They’re definitely up to something.”

My fingers tighten around my glass, the faint hum of restrained power running beneath it and zinging through my veins. “No, you’re right, she’s not. But she’s definitely U21. I think I can feel her magic.”

The cyber-orchestra swells behind them, their holographic forms flaring to the crescendo. Outside, the air twists, and a breeze kicks up, as if Jett is commanding the air we breathe.

“Fuck, he’s coming over here.” I turn and face away from the crowd, forcing my gaze to the eclipse beginning its slow crawl across the sky.

He’s wearing a sly grin when he stops in front of us. He scans Lyra slowly from head to toe. I recall the mental note from before. I still need to stab his eyes out.

“Lyra! You look absolutely breathtaking this evening,” he says, pouring on the rebellious charm. My mind wanders to the place where I shove him off the terrace, or maybe I should slit his throat with this glass. Both are viable options, along with the eye gouging, of course.

“You didn’t think I’d miss the city’s biggest masquerade, did you?” He takes a sip from the flute. “Relax, Ryudon, tonight, I’m just another bored rich man funding my fetishes.”

My jaw clamps. “You shouldn’t be here. Someone could recognize you.”

“Neither should you,” he says, eyes flicking toward Lyra again. “Especially with her looking like that, but I suppose we all have secrets to protect.”

Ash slips away from the terrace edge and rejoins us, his tone grave. “We’ve got another problem...outside.” He motions with a finger over the balcony.

“A problem...must be a weekday. What’s your point?” My sarcasm isn’t easily contained after two glasses of whiskey, and soon to be more if we don’t get out of here.

“U21s have gathered in the plaza. Peaceful, but barely.” Ember looks toward the stage, where Vikktor has CIC leaders gathering and whispering in his ear. “My father’s going to call for containment protocols soon.”

“Really, Navarre?” I turn toward him, invading his personal space.

Lyra looks from one of us to the other. “Containment protocols?”

Jett answers quietly: “Yes, really, Ryudon. What Vikktor calls crowd management is actually violence against basic human rights.” He shrugs it off, but the tension still spikes. “Nothing we haven’t seen before.”

A low tremor shakes the glass around us. The gala crowd pauses, mistaking it for some type of music or planned effect. Ember’s eyes dart to check the news feed on her DataLINK as she frantically pulls it out of her tiny purse, nothing but a screen enforcing the blackout period. Security cams are still working, though, fed by hydrogen-fueled generators, much like the ones we use for the lab to keep the servers running without power.

“LINK, show me security cam footage of VikkCorp Plaza.” Her eyes widen as she holds the DataLINK out for us all to see. Hundreds of U21s fill the paved space, faces half-covered, banners pulsing with holographic light.

NO CORPORATIONS. NO ROBOTS. NO MORE CONTROL.

Lyra stares at the feed, voice trembling. “They’re going to slaughter them, aren’t they?”

Ember lowers her DataLINK. Concern fills her expression. “If they cross the barricade, my father will authorize a purge. He’s wanted a reason.”

Jett just smiles smugly. “Relax. My people know what they’re doing. They’re not here to start a war, just to remind the elite who they’re dealing with.”

“You’re playing a dangerous game, and on the eve of the extraction? What in the hell were you thinking, Jett?” My face is flush with anger.

“Oh, so it’s your game now? Aren’t we all just playing Vikktor’s game, Ryudon?” He takes another sip of his drink as he glances over at Lyra. “Though some of us play for higher stakes, like our humanity.”

Lyra meets his eyes. “You knew this was happening.”

He smirks. “You think revolutions schedule themselves, ‘Little Taiyō?’ ” He’s mocking me, and it hits its target with exact precision.

I push forward, chest-to-chest with him. “You don’t get to call her that,” I warn. “You’re risking Lyra for your cause. Of all times to do this, it had to be now?”

Jett leans in even more, as if daring me to throw a punch, voice low enough only I can hear. “No, Kael. I risked you. The rebellion needs a target, someone besides the Corporation to blame, and right now, you’re it. The fallen corporate architect. The man who built the machines that will hunt us down and kill us in the streets, only to turn against it all.

“Don’t!” I warn. “Not tonight. I’m not joining your stupid rebellion just because I have magic now.” Speaking of, it begins to build in my pupils, the golden-orange heat spreading outwards, flushing my face.

He smiles wider. “I’m not asking you to join us. Just to stop pretending you’re not one of us now.”

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