A shuttle flew overhead and lowered to hover beside Cruiser Erin. Docking arms emerged and pulled the shuttle in close until its bulk only slightly bulged free from the side. Not long after that, Persuasion emerged in the company of Zelda and Restoration.

  A single Jinn soldier tailed them for security. Given that those three women weren’t built for combat, he initially worried that a single guard would be insufficient. Then his mental sense locked onto the soldier. Not only was the man at level ten, he was a fully mechanized cyborg. He was a machine with a thin layer of synthetic skin on top. There were no biological components to be found. Hector suspected the man was deadly even without the plasma rifle slung at the ready.

  Persuasion smiled and held her arms out for a hug. “Look at this guy! I remember the day we met. When you weren’t moving between worlds in a transit sphere that could barely fit you, you were getting into shouting matches with Lords and being rewarded for it. No one knew back then what you would become. The smart money was on ‘corpse’ but fate wasn’t done with you.”

  He pulled out of the embrace. “Are you trying to mess with my head?”

  “Should I be?”

  “I’m pretty sure we need to get out of here before Platinum arrives. You’re bringing up a bunch of crazy shit I got away with back when I was questing.”

  Persuasion grinned like she’d been caught doing something naughty. “Maybe a little bit. But for good reason. The Lord Platinum has been a reliable ally since before the Coalition Army came into existence. You would be shocked at the things that woman had her fingers in. She’s not what I’d call a charitable person, but she takes a healthy interest in the survival of the multiverse. It’s where she keeps all her things, after all.”

  Things Platinum had her fingers in. “The Dream Engine,” Hector said.

  “Possibly. I wasn’t involved with that one. After the fall of Aes, the Lord Platinum helped the Jinn relocate Xian from New Mart to worlds along a forming miasma vein. It didn’t ultimately do much good, but she covered up actions that could have resulted in a major incident. More recently, she has been providing the Coalition Army with resources for Xian dreamers. Without markup, mind you.”

  “I have history with her,” Hector warned.

  Persuasion shrugged. “She is the rare Lord who understands the stakes, Hector. That woman values her life more than any petty vendetta. We’re staying for the resources Foresight arranged. We’ll have Conflagration present during the meeting, so you need not fear anything.”

  The speech was convincing. Perhaps too convincing. Hector worried she might be using her realm on him. Having recently become a Sage, he had a much greater understanding of how such things worked. The fact that his mind was essentially immune to outside energy didn’t do anything to prevent influence propagated by resonance. Persuasion might have to be a little more creative, but nothing stopped her from manipulating even a Lord.

  But what if she was getting inside his head? He didn’t believe Persuasion would place him into harm given what she expected of him. So… if she was using her abilities on him, it was only because she thought he was being unreasonable. Which could very well be the case. He needed to reclaim some of the boldness that filled him before achieving his second insight.

  The Sage patted him on the shoulder. “A week ago you murdered a Dragon, Hector. Talking to a Lord with allies at your side is no big deal.”

  “Right. You’re right.” Hector forced a smile and placed his hands in his pockets to conceal their trembling. “Did you find any problems when you were flying around?”

  “There are no indications that the Amaratti are active on New Mart.”

  The level ten cyborg moved closer. “I know your kind think Jinn military might is limited to our vessels, but we never cease to innovate new technologies. I will be far from useless in a fight, even against a Lord.”

  Hector held out his hand and asked the man’s name.

  “Captain Devin. Cyborg elite operator.”

  “Elite operator?”

  Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

  “The step above special operator. I’m packed full of classified tech.”

  The claim was made with such casual confidence that Hector had to wonder what the man could do. “What is your realm?”

  “More than just my tech is classified, Lord Dragonbane.”

  Meaning they would not be learning any details about Captain Devin’s realm.

  Persuasion linked arms with Restoration and Isabel. “Would the two of you care to join me and the Captain for a chat with our hosts? I want to make sure our expectations remain aligned.”

  When the women and their guard were gone, Piercing gestured towards Cruiser Erin. “What do you guys think about heading back inside for a while? I’ve got a lovely little sit-down planned in the sanitation room and wouldn’t mind some dinner after that.”

  Everyone groaned at Piercing’s euphemism, but the group did return to their vessel. Zelda walked beside Hector. “I’m glad to see you’re well,” she began.

  Hector shot past the bland pleasantries. “How are you?”

  The emphasis he’d placed into his words made it through. “Better. Sometimes it feels like the stuff with Rod never happened, though. I hate that, Hector. He meant so much to me, but it only lasted a short time. Then I returned to my family, who never met him. I don’t want to get over him or forget him. He mattered a great deal to me.”

  “I think of him often,” Hector said. “Usually when I’m feeling guilty for something.”

  “You didn’t cause his death.”

  “I know, Zelda. It’s the price I pay for being a Xian fighting in mixed company. So many of my comrades die from miasma poisoning. Their lungs fail or their soul begins to crumble apart. A lot of people I know go on a suicidal last mission because it’s easier to be brave fighting a monster than falling apart day after day. Rod was the first friend I lost to the war.”

  Zelda gave him a bright smile. “He would have loved being part of your retinue.”

  “Oh, I wish he could have met Rover Fred. The two of them would have been perfectly intolerable together.” Hector shook his head. “No Malachi or Vivian?”

  “I don’t think they were invited,” Zelda said. “It’s possible they wouldn’t have wanted to be involved. It’s certain they aren’t qualified to be part of this group. Vivian’s greatest ability was invisibility, while Malachi never formed his externality the last I saw him. Neither were impressive warriors. I’m not either, but I will talk myself up a bit and say my rituals make me an ideal resource for a mixed group like this.”

  “Then you don’t regret your insight?”

  “I fixated on fire because I wanted to make a difference and the greatest Sage of my time used it. Lacking the personal connection, any fire insight I received would have been unimpressive. Symbology fits better with who I actually am.”

  Their group settled into the rec room on the fourth deck. Hector sat at a card table with Zelda, Riley, and Conrad. Ajax claimed a seat on the floor, complaining about the fragile chairs. Esther busied herself with a holographic murder mystery game in the corner, zealously questioning computer-generated characters about their whereabouts on the date in question.

  Soon Piercing returned from his bio-break, bringing Darius with him. The two of them seemed to be mid argument about whose waste was more offensive to the nose. Piercing’s exaggerated descriptions were best characterized as humorous character assassination. On the other hand, it sounded like Darius was ramping up towards a physical confrontation.

  Seeing his concern, Conrad shook his head. “It’s fine. They do this all the time. I think the two of them like having someone to hate.”

  “Don’t be preposterous,” Darius snapped. “I do not care for the company of this clown.”

  “Lick my nut sack,” Piercing said.

  Esther appeared as if she’d teleported across the room. “And that’s it for today! You two are separated. No talking to each other, no talking about each other, and keep a buffer space.”

  Darius obstinately moved to stand beside Hector, effectively forcing Piercing away from the center of action if he chose to abide by Esther’s rules. The Sage chuckled and sauntered away to take over the game Esther had begun. Her cheek twitched, but she didn’t say anything further.

  Hector made to stand and the eunuch held out a hand to check him. “We are not hugging.”

  “It’s good to see you, Darius.”

  “You finally succeeded in drawing me into the war effort.” Darius glanced towards Riley and sighed at the expectant expression on her face. “I am happy you are well, Hector.”

  “I’m surprised you weren’t at the pavilion earlier.”

  “Must I be a creature of the herd now?”

  Hector raised his hands in surrender. “It’s been a hell of a day so far. I’m not even sure how long I was asleep.”

  “Six days. Isabel claims anything short of a full week is no cause for concern.”

  Zelda interrupted the conversation at that point. “There is probably something we should discuss while Persuasion and Isabel are absent. They have a major disagreement on the matter of your advancement. Persuasion wants you to become a Lord in truth.”

  “Based on everything I know, that’s not possible for me,” Hector said.

  She accepted his words with a solemn nod. “Then everyone needs to commit to the decision. Then never discuss the issue with Persuasion to avoid having your mind changed. One way we protect Hector is by not letting him be pressured into this danger.”