by Eva Brandt
“Of course I will,” I snapped back. “I might not have a lot of time at the academy, but that won’t stop me.”
“You haven’t even gotten the chance to shoot a gun, Selene,” Knox reasoned. “You don’t have a chance.”
“Thanks for the vote of confidence,” I answered, hurt despite my best attempt to not let his attitude get to me. “I don’t need to shoot a gun to pilot a chimera. Besides, I have other weapons.”
“You’re lovely, Ms. Renard, but I don’t think your feminine charms will help you in The Grand Tartarus Tournament,” someone else said from behind me. I hadn’t realized the other students had been paying attention to the conversation between me and my lovers. In hindsight, that had been stupid of me.
I turned on my heel, only to face Jared Glass and the rest of the Harpy tamers. He and I didn’t interact a lot, but he was among the few people who still verbally harassed me despite Tiny Typhon’s constant presence. It wasn’t a huge secret in the school that I was sleeping with the other members of my unit and he liked to point it out in front of everyone. He seemed to believe I’d come here specifically to be Brendan’s sex toy, but I’d stopped caring about that a long time ago.
Knox snarled in irritation. “Stay out of this, Glass. It’s none of your business.”
“Of course it’s my business.” Glass smirked. “I’m a fellow concerned student and I have to consider the interests of the school.”
“Tell me, what tooth cleansing lotion do you use?” I asked sweetly. “It must be quite the product if you manage to spout that kind of chimera excrement on a regular basis without having permanent bad breath.”
Gaia help me, did these people never tire of being idiots? I had enough on my plate fighting against the absurdity of the authorities without dealing with such pettiness too.
The dean’s return seemed to have emboldened Glass, because today, he was particularly vicious. He twitched in irritation at my comment, but otherwise ignored it. “Tell you what, Ms. Renard? Are you up for a bet?”
Alarm bells started ringing in my head, but I couldn’t back out of this conversation, not yet, not without losing face. “A bet? How childish. I’ll hear you out, but don’t expect more.”
“Oh, I assure there’s nothing childish about this bet.” Glass’s dark blue eyes met mine, unreadable and sharp. “The terms are quite simple. If you qualify for the next stage of the tournament, we’ll all acknowledge you as worthy of being a student at this institution. If you don’t, you’ll drop out of Chimera Academy and become a sex worker in Persephone’s Plaza.”
I had no idea what Persephone’s Plaza was, but I could extrapolate. I’d seen enough in Tartarus City to make a few guesses. I also had no intention of playing his game or letting him bait me into bullshit like that. “That doesn’t seem like a fair deal,” I replied. “I’ve already been officially acknowledged as a tamer. That’s why I’m here. I don’t need your opinion to validate my position.”
Anger flickered through his gaze at my defiance. “Is that a fact? I think you’re just a cowardly Terran whore.”
“Again, I don’t care about your opinion,” I replied. “But if you’re insisting on this nonsense, how about we make things even? If I qualify and you don’t, you drop out of the Harpy Squad.”
I didn’t think he’d take me up on it. The tournament was difficult and there were no guarantees. Brendan and the others had said that Jared Glass had become a tamer by the skin of his teeth. He wouldn’t want to risk what he’d accomplished with such difficulty.
I’d underestimated his determination and arrogance. “Deal,” he said with a smirk. “It’s a pleasure doing business with you. I look forward to pounding that sweet pussy every single day, until you’re so loose you won’t even be able to walk straight.”
“Charming,” I answered, hiding my shock and dread under a mask of nonchalance. If I’d known he’d act like that, I never would’ve agreed, not when I didn’t have all the information. I’d miscalculated, badly, but I wouldn’t let him scare me. “No wonder you need whores if that’s your behavior toward women,” I continued. “No self-respecting woman would give you the time of day.”
“Women don’t need to speak,” Jared’s cousin, Vincent, said. “All they need to do is lie there and take it.”
“A woman was built to be fucked, Ms. Renard,” Jared finished. “That’s all your mouth is, another hole to fuck. Nobody cares about what you have to say. And by the time this is over, I’ll prove to everyone there’s nothing special about you.”
He took a step forward, as if intending to intimidate me through his sheer presence. It didn’t work.
The moment Jared moved, Knox was in front of me, grabbing him by the uniform and holding him aloft as if he was nothing more than a puppet. “You’re one to talk, you unworthy piece of trash. You’re only a tamer because Zephyrus took pity on you. You’re the one who isn’t special.”
The words held a deep animalistic quality that made them hard to understand. Even so, the message came through quite clearly. Knox also chose to emphasize his point by dumping Glass on the tarmac and grinding his foot against his spine. “You don’t even deserve to kiss her boots, let alone touch her with your dick.”
The other Harpy tamers lunged forward, undoubtedly wanting to aid their leader. August lifted his hand and two of them went flying, struck by an unseen blast. In an uncharacteristic display of aggression, Pollux grabbed Vincent and threw him into the path of three others, making all of them fall to the ground.
I’d expected the violence from Knox. August’s outburst didn’t surprise me either. Pollux’s reaction did. He’d always been among the calmer people of our little group. But that leashed anxiety I’d sensed inside him had been begging to come out for a while now. It had been only a matter of time until something like this happened.
Brendan stepped in before things could escalate further. “If you don’t want to go into the tournament with a missing limb, you’ll do well to run along now,” he said.
All of a sudden, I was aware that at one point during the past ten minutes, a circle had formed around me and the two chimera squads. Every other student was staring at us and had undoubtedly heard the whole exchange, including the bet I’d made. I cursed myself for my recklessness. The last thing I’d wanted was to turn into a spectacle.
But in the end, did it really matter? The students at the academy were gossips, and news of the bet would’ve reached everyone’s ears anyway, even if we hadn’t been in public. Besides, I had no intention of it being relevant for my future. I wouldn’t let any of these men intimidate me.
In the meantime, I had to prioritize and end this confrontation here. The teachers hadn’t shown up yet, but they might. If that happened, I doubted the Harpy tamers would be the ones reprimanded. They might have offended me, but August, Pollux, and Knox had been the ones to resort to physical violence. I didn’t want any of them to get expelled because they’d decided to defend my honor.
“Well, it looks like the tournament will be exciting, wouldn’t you say?” I asked, drawing the students’ attention to me once again. After a few seconds of consideration, I winked and added, “Make sure to look into the requirements for being a Harpy tamer, everyone. It looks like their unit will have a free spot in the future.”
I didn’t feel nearly as smug and confident as I claimed, but that was all right. As long as they believed it, I’d make do. I had so far. Gaia and Tartarus would help me.
Without another word, I left the group and made my way back toward the academy. When my lovers didn’t follow me, I tried not to feel abandoned, but utterly failed.
* * *
Pollux
It was a disaster. It was a disaster of epic proportions. The story was repeating itself and I didn’t know what to do.
I curled in the seat of the Scylla, hyperventilating. I knew I shouldn’t have reacted so poorly to the news of the tournament, but I couldn’t help myself. Flashes of my sister’s screams kept coming b
ack to me, worse than in my usual nightmares. I closed my eyes, and instead of seeing Stella, I saw Selene.
“You haven’t failed your lover, my dear Pollux,” Scylla reminded me. “Breathe. Nothing’s happened yet. Selene is fine and Sphinx will make sure she stays that way.”
“Chimeras aren’t all-powerful, Scylla,” I told her. “You of all people should know that. It’s very likely that, in a week, Selene will have to face the school on her own.”
“She’s braver and stronger than you realize,” Scylla chastised me. “She’s not your sister. She never was.”
I understood that. How could I not, when I still remembered the feel of her silken skin beneath my fingertips, the taste of her sweet lips? We hadn’t gotten the chance to be together too many times, but it didn’t matter. With Selene, one kiss and one touch was enough.
That didn’t change the essence of my problem. Selene was not Stella, no, but she was just as vulnerable as my twin had been.
As I mused over my dilemma, the side hatch of the Scylla opened, connecting to the Charybdis. August crawled into the cockpit of my chimera.
“Hey,” he greeted me. “So… This is all very awful.”
“That’s the understatement of the century, August. We have to stop it, somehow.”
August shook his head sadly. “There’s no way to stop it, not anymore. You know that.”
“But she doesn’t understand how this works, not really. We should’ve told her the truth. We should’ve done more. We should’ve stepped in before she agreed to that bet.”
We hadn’t. We’d allowed her to speak to that idiot Glass, although we’d known he was bad news. “We were so stupid, August.”
“I don’t know if that’s the best description,” August answered. “Selene wouldn’t have allowed us to speak up in her stead anyway. She’s not that kind of girl.”
No, Selene was very stubborn and stood her ground, no matter what. In that respect, she and Stella were nothing alike. My sister had been delicate, like a fragile greenhouse flower. It had been so easy for The Grand Judiciary to extinguish her spark. Selene’s Terran background might give her a better chance. Or it might damn her. It was too soon to tell.
“Look, if push comes to shove and she loses, we’ll take her off Tartarus and hide her somewhere,” August continued. “The bet isn’t a legal contract. She’ll have to drop out of the school, yes, but we already knew that was the best course of action. She can return to Terra or if that doesn’t work, we’ll find her a different hiding spot.”
He had a point. Most of our families were rich. Knox’s parents didn’t like him much, but he never lacked money. They probably wouldn’t blink an eye if he used a large amount of credits to buy a miniature asteroid or something.
King Philip was a little more difficult to fool, but Brendan had always been resourceful. If it was necessary, he’d intervene. I’d prefer to not have to turn to my father, but I’d do it if I absolutely had to.
In any case, I couldn’t stay here and hide like a coward. I had to face reality. Seeking refuge with Scylla was all well and good, but I didn’t have time to fall apart, not now. “You’re right. Sorry. I panicked.”
“There’s no need to apologize. Now, we need a plan for the tournament. What do we do?”
It was a good question. Whether she wanted to admit it or not, Selene wasn’t ready for a Grand Tartarus Tournament. Yes, she was powerful and she’d made good progress throughout the past couple of weeks. I’d believed that Professor Trevor would soon introduce Shuttle Piloting in her curriculum and a Tachyon Firearms class had been imminent. But those had all been plans for the future. Selene had power, but it was unpolished, like a rough diamond. As long as that was the case, she couldn’t participate in such an important competition.
But she’d already made her decision and had agreed to that stupid bet on top of that. There was only one conclusion we could draw.
“She needs our help. We have to at least get her through the qualifiers.”
August nodded. “It’ll be easier if we know what they want us to do. I wonder if we can find out in some way.”
Together, we left the Scylla and jumped outside, into the empty hangars. We headed back to the dorms, where we hoped we’d find some answers and guidance.
As it turned out, Brendan was already three steps ahead of us. When we got to our room, we found him and Knox already bent over the holographic reports of previous tournaments. “I’ve started looking into the nature of the qualifiers. Father knows, I’m sure of it, but he’d never tell me, and I’d never ask. But I have some eyes and ears at court and that’ll give me some idea of what we’ll be facing. In any case, we can already make some guesses based on what the qualifiers have been about in the past. I doubt they’d add variety just for Selene’s sake.”
“So automatic chimeras and drones?” I asked.
“Among other things, yes. Apsid simulators too.” He flipped through the data floating in front of him. “Five tournaments ago, there was a Terran simulator, but they’re not likely to use that with Selene around.”
“This is ridiculous,” Knox grumbled under his breath. “Honestly, Brendan, I know it’s unusual for her to be here, but to go so far? To schedule a tournament just for her? It’s insane.”
“So is breeding our women with apsids, and The Grand Judiciary has done that too,” I reminded him.
He froze and stared at me like I’d just sprouted a second head. I never spoke about what had happened to Stella and they did me the courtesy of never mentioning it either. I couldn’t help but say it now, because they had to acknowledge the severity of these events.
“That’s not going to happen again, Pollux,” August said fiercely. “We won’t let it.”
I wanted to believe him, but in our world, good intentions weren’t enough for a good outcome. Women were tools and not chimera tamers. Our families were murderers and we were just as guilty of their crimes.
One day, we’d undoubtedly have to pay the price for everything we’d done. But not yet. For now, I still had a goal and a dream. I still had a battle to fight, and I would die before I let Selene get caught in the crossfire.
The Tournament Begins
Selene
A week wasn’t a lot of time to prepare for the tournament, and it passed with striking speed. Despite their original reaction, my lovers proved to be supportive. Brendan had started looking into possible options for the first test. We practiced my tachyon manipulation together every day and continued my lessons on hand-to-hand combat training.
Brendan and the others were concerned about my lack of experience with firearms. They weren’t allowed to teach me anything new themselves and weaponry would undoubtedly be needed in the tournament. Although they were willing to break the rules for my sake, we ended up finding a better solution.
The first time I held a phaser pistol in my hand, it felt too heavy and alien. The tachyon manipulation technique required to use it was much too complex. I didn’t try to shoot it, fearing that I’d end up blowing up my own hand.
“Using a phaser for the tournament is out of the question,” August said when I explained my problem. “You need another weapon.”
“How about a sword?” I suggested. “Do you have that here?”
They did, although they didn’t use weapons like that often. Tungsten swords had fallen out of fashion a century or so ago, when the space force had begun relying far more on long distance firearms like phasers. Even so, the equipment had been preserved in the storage of the base and it was easy enough to procure one for me.
My lovers were naturally doubtful about my choice. “Do you know how to use one?” Knox asked as he handed the blade over. “This doesn’t seem like the best idea.”
“I’ll be fine. I’ve had practice with swords when I was on Earth and I’ve learned enough tachyon manipulation to adjust.”
Knox relaxed, his tight expression melting away into a small smile. “I see. Well, it would seem we were wrong in u
nderestimating you.”
I immediately felt guilty for my lie. My experience with wielding a sword was limited to the few times I’d participated in my mother’s terra-forming trips. She had occasionally allowed me to clean areas of rampant vegetation using blades. That had stopped as I’d grown older and I’d realized I’d never receive Gaia’s Gift, so I couldn’t rely on that experience.
Still, I couldn’t tell Knox or the others any of that, since it would just make them worry more. So I kept my mouth shut, pretended I knew what I was doing, and continued my preparations.
According to what Brendan told me, there was a high chance the tournament qualifiers would involve robots. My sole experience with that kind of thing had been in Tachyon Manipulation class. I suspected the mechanical monstrosity the organizers intended to throw at us wouldn’t be nearly as harmless and easy to defeat as the dummies.
The armor I received on the eve of the competition didn’t fill me with too much confidence. It was a reinforced version of my uniform, but it lacked the markings of Chimera Academy. As I swept my palm over the smooth, but heavy material, I wondered how many blows the organizers expected me to receive. This uniform was designed with a higher degree of fire resistance and protection against blunt trauma, and that alone suggested the test ahead would be tough.
To make matters worse, the judge would be the king himself, which meant that Brendan’s family would be coming here. Brendan hadn’t mentioned anything about me potentially meeting him, and a part of me was grateful. But if the king knew about me and had encouraged this tournament, I could only conclude he didn’t like me very much. That couldn’t end well.
And so, despite all my attempts to remain focused and bury myself in my studies, I couldn’t ignore the dangers. On the morning of the tournament, I woke up with a headache, feeling nauseous and tired. I’d barely slept a wink the night before, taunted by strange dreams filled with fire and destruction. The sluggishness couldn’t have come at a worst time, but I forced myself to surpass it. I couldn’t afford to panic. I needed to grab a bite and mentally prepare myself for the battle ahead.
