(18)

(18)

“No one is going with you,” Mazingwe growled.

Seth seemed completely unbothered. He merely tilted his head before replying with a nod.

“That would be my first choice as well.”

The high gleam still stood between them. Wait, Mazingwe was defending her?

“You see, humans need their packs and little Nezhra is still very young and she would be very sad if those bonds were broken. And her being sad would make me very, very angry. Were you not about to break those connections?”

“This is the best option. The best one I could think of.”

“Reconsider.”

Mazingwe’s aura flared ever so slightly. Seth was still aloof.

“Shinran would have protected her. And before I reconsider anything, what happened to the people outside?”

“Oooooh they’ll be just fine. They won’t even remember it. Just having a moment of introspection and being very focused on their toes right now. Everyone is fine. Everyone is alive. For now.”

“For now?”

“Yes! Pending on your decision.”

“Sounds like you want everyone to stay that way.”

“Correct. And it depends on you.”

“And what would it take for everyone to stay alive?”

Seth moved his head again. He was doing that a lot, as if it was part of his language which was weird considering he was the same as her and she didn’t feel the need to do it. Maybe a difference? Actually, now that she was looking more, his face was less human than hers, the eyes larger, and he had very long, very sharp ears while hers were only slightly pointed. Not to mention the horns were different. She wasn’t sure what to think about it.

“Easy. Swear on your core not to betray her secret and we’re good.”

“You just want me not to tell her secret?”

“That’s right,” demon Seth said, eyes half-lidded over a knowing smile.

“And let two demons loose around mankind?”

“I think there are four things you’re forgetting,” Seth replied quickly. “One, she clearly cares about you and your kind much more than many of your own humans. Two, I was already loose around mankind before this moment. And I have been loose for a while, which you didn’t notice. We have masks, remember? Three, the alternative is that we fight and you know, as an experienced warrior, that you do not stand a chance against me.”

“Not a chance against you?”

“Shinran couldn’t do it.”

He smirked, and Mazingwe seemed to tense though Nestra couldn’t see his face from that angle. It was still weird that he was standing between Seth and her as a protective guardian despite his words.

“Which leads me to my fourth point,” Seth said “What you’re doing is mirroring which is an interrogation and negotiation technique. I’ve studied human law enforcement extensively and I do not think you appreciate the position you are in, so I will make it clear. You will accept my terms and swear on your core, or your city will be razed to the ground.”

“You say you faced Shinran? And yet the city somehow didn’t hear about it?”

“I faced him inside of a portal world, obviously. I didn’t want the city to know, just him.”

Seth’s smile widened.

“He’s full of surprises. But that is not for me to share.”

“I want you two gone. I do not hate her but...”

“That is not an option for you. I will have the oath from you or you will die. You will respect the oath or the city will die. Those are your options.”

“It sounds like —”

“No. No tricks. Choose.”

Mazingwe actually considered dying for the cause, for nothing. And condemning those outside. Seth must have perceived it because he continued in a soft voice.

“I swear that Shinran knows I am here. I also solemnly swear that since I arrived here, I have not taken a single human life. We both want peace here, but I also want little Nezhra to be happy. Desist.”

“If Shinran really knows, surely he will confirm it.”

Seth tilted his head again, probably considering the offer.

“I have no objection. No one else.”

“Very well. For the sake of peace and life, I agree not to share Miss Palladian’s secret identity with anybody in any way except for Shinran.”

“Good enough for me. Remember, you talk and...”

Seth shrugged. The gesture moved his massive body in a rather intimidating way.

“Very well.”

“And now I will be leaving. With her. Come with me Nezhra. We have to talk.”

“Oh yeah we definitely do.”

Nestra managed to move her tired body up though it was a colossal effort that should have been rewarded with a large slice of something caloric. Mazingwe helped her out, though he didn’t let his guard down.

“Miss Palladian,” Mazingwe said.

She turned to the imposing high gleam.

“Medical checkup tomorrow, 10 AM, my office. On your other body as well.”

“But it’s Sunday!”

“Don’t be late.”

“Aw. Ok. Oh, can I ask a question, doctor?”

“Hmm?”

“You finding us first, was that a coincidence or were you looking for me?”

The high gleam shifted from foot to foot. It was kind of hilarious.

“My duty is to protect my people from incursions. Nothing says I should not prioritize well-meaning yet insufferably risk-prone officers first.”

“Aw, you’re a softie!”

“Pot. Kettle.”

“And you are, in fact, the famous Dawn Spear. Wow, I would never have guessed.”

“Get out, Palladian, before I lose my patience.”

“Ok ok.”

Nestra followed Seth’s imposing form out into a shelter. Tomato soup bubbled in a large pot while people waited around or rested in cots. They all stared at their feet with great intensity, as if spacing out. Maybe that’s how it felt to them? Even Valerian was affected. The most curious thing was that Nestra didn’t feel anything besides Seth’s presence, and it was comforting. A bit of the void energy of the portals emanated from him and he smelled really good as well. Safe. He gave her a lopsided grin before addressing her in the demon tongue.

“I have prepared a meal!”

“Oh good!”

“You must be ravenous. Let’s get there first, then we can talk.”

“Ok.”

Seth walked her through the unmoving bodies of the sick bay. The tomato soup was dangerously bubbling. Valerian was leaning against a pillar in a state of anguish. The traitor, She was pissed at him but... only a little bit. He’d broken his word out of concern for her well-being. It was the wrong decision but, if she had to be honest, if Shinoda told her he was fine but he clearly wasn’t, she would not respect his wishes aaaand it would not happen now. Damn.

Shinoda was dead.

Felt so sudden. Never had the chance to say goodbye, or even good luck or something. She couldn’t cut Valerian off now but she would scream at him.

The door of the sick bay slammed shut behind them and the conversations picked up immediately. She heard the cook swear a storm too. Seth energetically dragged her through corridors packed with supply crates and sleeping people. This was clearly underground but outside of a shelter, maybe some sort of exchange node? The usual smell of dust and stagnant humidity made orientation difficult. To her mild surprise, Seth led her deeper underground until they were in some sort of pump room. Faint traces of void energy told her a portal might be nearby but it was far too diffused for her to use. Not for Seth, apparently. He waved his hand in the air, then grabbed her own small human limb and dragged her through the fabric of the world.

Just like that.

She gasped. Heat on her human skin and filtering through the sole of her shoes. The stench of sulfur. Cracked basalt poked with marks, smoke blowing up from stone chimneys. A dark orange sky. They were now in a portal world in some volcanic island. Strange shelled creatures as large as cows skittered a way when Seth sauntered forth. A deadly silence filled the place. The tall demon made his way straight to the edge of the portal world and the membrane there. He placed a massive mitt against the surface. Or in front of it. It wasn’t exactly solid, or even there to begin with. Seth turned at the last moment with a worried look.

“Oh, right. I told you this before but don’t do it at home!”

“I remember ok?”

“Yes yes but sometimes you younglings just want to try stuff. Don’t do it.”

Once again, he pushed and unceremoniously dragged her through it, which felt like falling off a cliff, being pushed through a mattress and choking all at the same time.

“Blegh,” Nestra said.

Then she blinked, realizing they were back on earth in a large apartment, or at least it looked like one. The outer walls were a little weird.

Whoever had designed the place really favored open spaces. There were support pillars but otherwise, only the bedroom and bathroom were separated and even then, it looked like recent work. Furniture and shelves stood in harmonious arrangements but the concept of room was firmly denied.

“Welcome to my home away from home! You are the second person to visit it. You must be hungry!”

She was, in fact, ravenous. Seth navigated through carefully arranged seats and tables to a cooking... place covering a large part of the apartment’s corner. He did something with his hands and dishes appeared on an American-style table. Nestra hesitated. She wanted to eat in demon form. She could smell the mana from here.

“You’ll be fine,” Seth told her, kind abyssal eyes centered on her.

She just knew they were even if there was nothing but darkness. Weird. Too hungry to give it more thought, she removed the mask and the pain moved to the forefront. It was all she could do not to groan, though her Skin had thankfully cleaned her up, somehow. She was at least not actively bleeding but her healing had slowed down, probably due to a lack of nutrients. Seth’s dishes were Japanese-inspired which reminded her, again, of Shinoda, and made her sad. She gulped down the miso soup in seconds. It had some salmon bits in it. Delicious.

“Enjoy!” Seth said with great pride.

Nestra had questions but she dug in first. Seth wasn’t going anywhere anyway. Gyozas in soy sauce were next, then came the ramen. The broth was perfect. The egg hit her taste buds with a wall of rich umami flavors. And there was mana there, not just in the meat but in the noodles as well! It was absolutely great.

“Hm! Hm!”

“I know, I am so pleased that humans dedicated so much effort to gastronomy. There are even knife techniques that are just for preparing food! Imagine that!”

“Hm.”

“Yes, you eat and I will explain. I am not sure what your thinking process is, so how about you ask the first question?”

Nestra slurped the end of her noodles and chewed faster than she would have liked just so she could speak.

“Seriously? You can’t imagine what I want to know? Like, what are we, to begin with?”

Seth was a strange mix of giddy and cautious. It was baffling.

“Yes! Of course. We are the People.”

In demon tongue it sounded Aszhii and was a bit of a hiss, one that a human mouth would struggle to reproduce and yet she could. It was... very strange.

“I told you I would share some of what we are with you when you reach the second sphere, ah, that is C-rank, and you are already there! I only need to teach you how to start building a core after you have recovered a little.”

“I am C-rank?”

“On the cusp of it, but please let us talk about that later.”

“Right. Hm! The meat is delicious.”

“Enclave prime pork cheek. Sadly, I cannot tell you much. Please know that we are old players in many worlds and that you are one of us. In fact, you are the first of us of human descent! And you are female! How very auspicious!”

His enthusiasm cast an immediate dread in Nestra’s heart to the extent she actually stopped eating. The term he’d used told her demon society placed a lot of emphasis on the difference between their genders.

“What do you mean, a woman is auspicious?”

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

“There are more than a hundred men born for every woman!”

An uncomfortable calculation wormed its way into Nestra’s mind. Her next words were enunciated very carefully.

“Ok, I need to make this clear. If you are counting on me to repopulate the species, I have very bad news...”

“No! Nooooo!”

Seth waved his hands with agitation. He almost looked revolted at the thought.

“Sorry, I should have led with that. Men and Women of the People do not... make babies together! Many of our women never bear children! It is the role of men to, ah, make more of the People with other sentients. Your role is different! You are here for the portals!”

He seemed very excited about that.

“The portals?”

“Yes! The women guide our war parties on the rare occasions when we unite against those who seek to exterminate us, and... but I shouldn’t share too much yet. You do portals! Openings through the weave. And you also gather in covens to have the men leave you alone and negotiate if they need a portal. Us men can still create openings and you can still change aspects of your shape, but making paths where none exist, that is the power of the women! We males are the ones who change shape and find suitable, ah, partners.”

“Sooooo you’re telling me you, what, have sex with other species and it creates demon babies.”

“Yes.”

Vertigo made Nestra’s mind swim.

“Oooooh shit. Oh shit. Wait, we are a species of CUCKOOS?”

“The, ah, the comparison is... not accurate!”

“Well, yes, maybe, if you want, I’ll get my own anyway stop interrupting me. What I want from you is.... sparring.”

“What?”

“Sparring. You teach me how to fight like a member of the People.”

She crossed her arms while he seriously considered her options, then she dug into the ramen because being so angry took a lot of energy. She was half done with the skewers by the time he came to a conclusion.

“It would not break any rule I can think of since it wouldn’t be considered pampering. However, I have to tell you that normally, we learn how to fight from our host species. Mostly via hunts.”

“Are you familiar with the term ‘murder investigation’?”

“No! Well, yes, but you miss the point. There are plenty of legal ways for you to attack host kin.”

“There would be if I were a fucking gleam, yeah?”

But in fact, she had a way. Maybe. In fact, Gorge had mentioned it. She could always become a masked gleam. All she had to do was use that and a full body suit while out in public. No one would suspect unless she talked too much.

“That is acceptable since I can teach you how to form a physical core anyway. I will prepare for sparring since otherwise I might hit you a little too hard.”

“That would be painful.”

“Briefly, yes. Very well. Oh! This is human bonding but between us! Ooooh I love this culture so much.”

“Ah yeah, so, you grew up in another civilization? On another world? How does that work?”

Seth shrugged, the movement exaggerated. He moved his head a little bit afterward.

“Just like that? I was raised with the other small ones?”

“So what was that civilization like? What are they called?”

“I will not tell you until you break through! Twice. Else you might let out information you shouldn’t know.”

“Do the, ah, head movements mean anything?”

“Ah! I’m doing it again. It just means I am excited. Sorry, the mannerism is meant to be hidden in adults of... my host kin but I have spent too much time away from them, and without a suitable mask on, I find it difficult to remember how to behave.”

“Great. I am excited as well. I... actually think I’d like to spend more time with you.”

“Yes yes yes! Okay! We’ll begin in a few days though. You need to rest. I have pushed you far enough.”

“Oh, is this what you said you were preparing me for? The Kaiju?”

“Yes. I saw the humans tampering with telluric veins with such recklessness, I knew it was only a matter of time before something attacked, and Shinran has been delving a lot since we faced each other so he wouldn’t help. Hahaha, he must be trying to kill me! I am glad I didn’t have to intervene to save you. Well done!”

“You kind of did.”

“Just to offset the effects of technology in terms of information sharing. It is only fair. Hmmm, I wonder if I should steal some fiber optics and a satellite.”

“Just don’t do it while I’m watching my vids thank you.”

After that, the conversation continued while Nestra took her time polishing off every dish on the table. Seth wouldn’t budge on sharing more about the People, portals, or other species, claiming she had to progress to the third sphere first. He didn’t seem to be in a rush, though with the speed at which Nestra was progressing, it might only be a matter of months, not years. Seth was strange when he wasn’t wearing a mask. He seemed just so happy and excited to have her around, so much that after she was done, he briefly showed her his collection of cooking tools. She was barely awake by then so he helped her through yet another portal world before dropping her home directly into her garage. She managed to drag herself upstairs before checking her message which were on her visor, miraculously intact since she’d worn it on her human mask.

There were quite a few messages from Officer Kim.

“Shit.”

Too tired but... she replied, saying she’d just woken up and was wounded. Officer Kim surprisingly replied though it was around 4AM by then.

“We will talk more after you have rested. There is no urgency.”

So she knew.

Nestra felt sorry for the woman but she was far too tired to do anything. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

***

Nestra woke up at twelve, following which she raided her own freezer and fridge like Attilla descending upon Rome. Her visor was choke full of messages and notifications, which she classified in order of how much hassle and emotional pain it would be to deal with. The first easiest call was to an unknown number since it was the only one that could possibly be urgent. Someone picked up after a single ring.

“Office of Doctor Mazingwe, hello.”

“Oh shit.”

“Miss Palladian, hello. The doctor was just finished.”

“I, errr, I can call la —”

“Miss Palladian,” the doctor’s smooth voice said.

It carried a certain tone she didn’t like very much.

“It occurs to me we had an appointment earlier this morning?”

“I was asleep. Exhausted. I literally just woke up.”

“Yes, it appears you have specific needs for sleep, more so than my usual patients. I will need you at my office at 4PM. You agree, of course?”

“I meaaaaaaan.”

“Miss Palladian, you need a medical certificate to justify your absence anyway. One that would require you to explain why someone who faced a horde of monsters did so without sustaining a single wound.”

“I’m sure I could come up with something.”

“Shame, and that was my last doughnut.”

“You know what? You’ve been very patient to me, Doctor Mazingwe.”

“Indeed.”

“4PM sharp unless I’m summoned somewhere.”

“If you are and the person is neither Shinran nor the mayor, do let me know as I would have choice words for them.”

Nestra mulled over the situation.

“Still can’t believe you’re Dawn Spear. Damn. You could be a leading figure in the Nairobi enclave if you wanted.”

“And that is why, Miss Palladian, I am here instead. I would really appreciate it if you kept that information private since there is a rather sizable price on my head.”

“Oh. Sorry.”

“4PM.”

“Yes. Goodbye.”

The next call was in house, so to speak. It came from District Fourteen’s precinct.

“Yes? This is Nestra Palladian.”

“Oh, thankfully you are alright. This is officer Gao from the Highway police. We found your car.”

She might have met this guy in the past, at a function or something, but she couldn’t place him. Threshold had a lot of cops and she tended to stay around the anglos.

“What’s left of it. You found the drone as well, right?”

“Absolutely. The attorney has been very interested in the origin of the drone, especially considering your current posting. We were mostly concerned about finding you, until we had confirmation that you had been seen in Fifteen. You rushed there immediately after the incident?”

“Yeah I needed to find my partner.”

“And... did you?”

“I did but he didn’t make it.”

There was silence for a few moments.

“Damn, sorry to hear that. We knew it got bad but we didn’t know how bad. I’ll still need you to come here to make a statement, at least for insurance’s purposes. It’s not urgent though, so if you’re hurt.”

“A little. Mostly tired though. I’ll definitely come early next week, if that’s ok?”

“Sure, sure. Oh, we got your gear as well to come and pick up. Nice sword, by the way. Anyway it’s all in house so don’t worry, just, I have to ask, do you need protection?”

Nestra considered Seth.

“I’m good, I think. Unless they start bombing runs on my house. I’d still love to know what the fuck happened because I doubt it was an accident.”

“Yeah, us too. You take care now and call me when you’re ready.”

Ok, that was another easy call. At least she’d get her blade back. Would have been useful to have back when facing the horde but whatever. At least she’d gotten some good practice in. The next calls were easy. Stibs was worried so she talked to her and promised to catch up soon. Aunt Claire called as well, furious to have missed Nestra and assuming she’d been home safe. The Palladians had participated in the horde cleanup until the wee hours of the morning so Nestra took solace in the knowledge their evening had been ruined as well. Gorge had unexpectedly asked how she was holding on but the asshole just exchanged a few text messages with her stating he was glad his cash cow hadn’t bought it yet. The last call for the day was by far the most difficult.

Officer Kim picked up after three rings, more than expected. Her voice was raw.

“First thing first, are you safe, Miss Palladian?”

“Yes. I’m home. You, uh...”

“I am safe as well. I have been placed on sick leave for one day and ordered to rest. Guild Affairs have taken over the case considering the gravity of the situation, as you may imagine.”

All gleams, Nestra remembered. Assholes who trampled everyone they wanted but at least their hatred of the guild system, which they saw as a humiliation to the idea of a strong state, was well known. Gidung wouldn’t get off the hook.

“I... just needed to know how he died. He was very precious to me as you may have surmised and they didn’t let me see him. I have to know.”

“Yeah, ok. Yeah. You need closure.”

One of the reasons why raiders went to great lengths to retrieve bodies.

“So, our hab block’s shelter had no issues but one of the nearby blocks didn’t have one, so Shinoda led a small group towards our own since our shelter was big enough to accommodate both. They were attacked by the faster monsters. There were a lot of dokkaebi but...”

“But also D-class monsters, I assume,” Officer Kim said with a resigned tone.

“Yeah. I helped the group fend off mana rats so I think they mostly made it but Shinoda was in the rear guard. They took a lot of fatalities. I found him in a checkpoint. He was killed by a neosaur he managed to take out as well. He died clean and I think the body was retrieved. I was saved by Valerian. I collapsed from exhaustion a little later but I assume the body was properly recovered.”

Kim gave a shaky sigh. Nestra’s excellent hearing picked up a few sniffles. She gave the woman a few moments of peace, wondering exactly how well the two had known each other.

She also remembered the woman had sent Nestra to look after Shinoda and Nestra had failed. She didn’t feel particularly guilty about it. He’d gone off without backup in the name of his principles, a respectable act but also one she had no control over. Shinoda had died a warrior’s death, the best possible end if she had to be honest. It was probably a belief she shouldn’t share with other people.

“That was what I was told. At least I can be certain they were honest now,” Kim finally said.

“Yeah.”

“There is... one more thing. No, two things. First, there are talks of allocating more social services and less officers now that most of the surviving gangers have either been killed or captured at the end of the purge when they went to secured locations. You will make sure the transfer of authority is done properly, then I will reassign you to a task that would better use your frankly impressive skills, which leads me to my second point.”

“Ok?”

“You... are not what you seem, Palladian. I had an inkling after you killed those gangers under the hab block and last night’s events confirmed it. You do not have to deny anything. This is not a trap. I just want you to listen.”

“Ok...”

“I wasn’t sure so I ran a few simulations on a tactical AI, the results of which I kept for myself of course. According to what you did, that is, finding Shinoda alone in the middle of a horde, your chances of survival were a flat zero.”

“Hmm.”

“According to a timing I confirmed with tunnel camera footage, it should have taken Valerian almost five minutes to find you after you left the refugee group behind. You survived a horde alone, without visible weapons, and without implants. To be honest, there are no implants in the market that would have saved you.”

Nestra held her breath.

“I will not ask more right now. I just want you to know that...”

Nestra waited for Kim to finish her sentence. It took a while.

“That Mr Watkins is going to be transferred to Central tomorrow. Some details were shared with me concerning the risks such a move entailed. There is a... a specific part of District Twenty-eight that an unscrupulous individual could use to get a vantage point to the back of the precinct. Police users can stop a great many things. A supersonic round isn’t one of them.”

“You think someone would try to assassinate him?”

“If an unscrupulous individual had the will, access to dangerous weaponry, and some inside information, a tactical AI would confirm this is the best place to do so. I would be very, very disappointed if our star witness disappeared before we nail his ass to the wall and Gidung with him.”

“Alright,” Nestra said. “And hypothetically, when would that be?”

“Tomorrow morning, 5AM. The Levant Project towers, which have not been finished due to financing concerns.”

“Ok.”

“And Palladian? One last thing.”

“Yes?”

“Shinoda’s funerals will be tomorrow. I took the liberty of organizing it since his estranged wife would make a political mess of it. Can I count on you coming?”

“You could not possibly stop me.”

“Very well. Thank you and... we can talk more there. About the future.”

“Sure. I’ll see you there then.”

That was probably ok. Kim was a work friend but not a real friend yet. Surely. Nestra jumped into the shower in demon form and let the warm water cleanse her. All her wounds were closed but they still felt tender to the touch. She hoped Mazingwe wouldn’t poke her. He clearly intended to make sure her demon self was healthy which was going to be a tall order without a baseline but that would never discourage the stubborn man.

Weird how her timetable was suddenly so busy. Well, there was some grieving and a lot of mopping up to do but it seemed her adventures in District Fifteen would be over only a week after starting. It had been a busy time. For now, her new goals were clear but she also wondered what the future would have in store for her. She hoped it would be edible.