Queen's Gambit (Lilith's Shadow Book 6)

by Benjamin Medrano

  “Yeah, but you’re in better shape than I am,” Emily said, scowling as she glanced at Gina and Rachel before adding. “Unlike Morgan and Warden, we can’t teleport, so… Dec, how high can the jet go?”

  “Um, excuse me? Do you have any idea how high up satellites are?” Gina demanded. “Remember Vegas? A low-Earth orbit is like, a hundred miles up, and can go to over ten times that! I can teleport about fifty miles in a jump if I’m doing particularly well, so teleporting isn’t going to cut it.”

  Emily opened her mouth to retort, but Decarin cut her off, raising his head reluctantly. “To answer the question, not nearly high enough. A hundred thousand feet is pushing it, and while I’m confident it can survive high altitudes, I wouldn’t trust it in the stratosphere. I’d have to modify the plane heavily to have a chance of getting into low orbit.”

  “Hm. It sounds like your warning was quite important, since that indicates that we’ve had a blind spot of sorts,” Shade said, smiling at Lilith, though she didn’t see much humor in his expression. “Not a pleasant revelation, but… the subject rather prevented that from being the case to begin with. Is there anything you can do to help?”

  “Not really,” Lilith said, letting out an aggravated sigh as she shrugged helplessly. “If I had some of her tech? Maybe. But I’m a mundane engineer at this point. Sure, I’m pretty bright, and was trained by an AI that had access to all of Amber’s databases, but I’m certain that Decarin and Hypergizmo could run rings around me in an afternoon at most. My powers also aren’t ideal for this sort of scenario. All I can do is provide you what information I have… most of which isn’t terribly useful.”

  “What about weaknesses?” Claire asked, frowning slightly as she tapped the table slowly. “You know a lot about her.”

  “I’d say that her primary weakness is her pride. Her inability to trust other people,” Lilith said, shrugging. “Though given that Circe Prime has told me that she’s always going to be on my side, I suspect there’s a good reason for her not trusting others. If push comes to shove, I suspect that Circe will side with me.”

  “Agreed,” Circe Beta said softly.

  “Gina and I found out quite a bit about Shadowmind when we delved into her mind, and I’m afraid that Lilith is right on that front, too,” Rachel said reluctantly. “We were hoping for weaknesses as well, but although her background was rather tragic, she honestly doesn’t care about it anymore. Her family could all go die in a fire as far as she’s concerned, and if you tried to sympathize, the most likely response is for her to laugh at you. At worst, she’ll play along, then crush you into the dirt when you let your guard down. She’s an absolute, evil bitch.”

  “Great,” Claire said, letting out a soft sigh.

  The meeting continued like that for a while, much as Lilith had expected. She just wished she could do more.

  Chapter 12

  Friday, November 21st, 2031

  Guardian Compound, Paragon City

  “I think that’s everything that we’re going to be able to do at this point,” Archon said at last, around the fourth time Shade and Rachel had tried to come up with a way to reach orbit via magic quickly and easily. Quickly was the main problem, in Gina’s opinion, as easily was pretty simple. They had magic, and gravity was a suggestion most of the time.

  “Agreed. I need to run the numbers and see if I can’t figure out some way to modify the jet, or if I’m going to have to build something new,” Decarin said, a sour note to his voice. Gina couldn’t blame him, since this had been dropped on all of them at the same time.

  “Right, in that case, I’d better go out and patrol a little. Dec, let me know if you need my help with anything,” Shade said, climbing to his feet and pulling his mask up.

  “Can do,” Decarin agreed, pushing his chair back with a world-weary sigh.

  Gina was about to do the same when Lilith cleared her throat, causing her to pause.

  “Ah, there was one other thing… if I may, I’d like to have a private conversation with Archon, Emily, Gina, and Rachel,” Lilith said, looking around the room, and Gina blinked as she saw how focused Lilith was. How composed… even more than she had been before revealing her news about Shadowmind.

  “I don’t see why not,” Archon said, settling back into her chair, and Spark nodded.

  “Sure!” the speedster said, grinning briefly, her eyes practically glittering as she met Gina’s gaze, which caused a wave of irritation to wash over Gina. Sure, Spark had been with Lilith while Gina and Rachel had been gone, but that didn’t mean she should be such a brat.

  “I think I’ll take my leave, then. I’ll chat with you later,” Claire said, smiling at Rachel, then Gina, and there was something in her gaze that Gina didn’t like. As if she’d been expecting this, which was… concerning.

  “Alright,” Rachel said, sounding confused as she looked at Gina. Decarin and Shade left, quickly followed by Claire, then Circe. Then there were only the five of them in the room, and Gina decided to start off.

  “So… what’s this about?” Gina asked, looking at Lilith in concern. “I mean, it isn’t about Shadowmind, I’m guessing?”

  “No, it has nothing to do with Amber,” Lilith said, leaning against the wall and folding her arms in front of her, her eyes narrowing slightly as she looked over them. “So… I know I’m the last person in the world who should get to use this expression, but I’m going to use it anyway. What has gotten into the four of you? Ever since your meeting about our relationships, you, Rachel, and Emily have been acting like children, and I’m very, very close to losing patience. I decided that talking to you before I lost my temper was the best decision, though.”

  “Um, what? What meeting are you talking—” Spark started to protest, but Lilith cut her off with a pointed look.

  “Thursday the thirteenth. You made sure that I was playing a game with Ra, Apollo, and Áine before having the meeting,” Lilith said, her voice dry as the desert, and Gina winced. “While you are many things, you aren’t that subtle, Emily. It doesn’t help that I overheard Archon talking to Decarin about Gina and Rachel coming over, and I noticed that I wasn’t told about the meeting. Putting the pieces together was simple, and I was discussing it with them while playing.”

  “Oh,” Spark said, then looked at Archon sheepishly, and the other heroine just chuckled softly.

  “Don’t look at me,” the angelic heroine said simply. “I’ve been extremely careful not to get involved in your turf war with Morgan and Warden. Though it does make me wonder… what have I been doing wrong?”

  “You don’t appear to have tried to stop them from being stupid,” Lilith said simply, pausing for just a moment before she admitted. “Though to be perfectly honest, your actions, or inactions, have proven to be the most reassuring out of everyone so far. Of course, I still haven’t gotten an explanation.”

  “I…” Rachel began, looking at Gina, then sighed and shrugged. “I have no excuse, Lilith. When Spark and Archon expressed their interest, it was… uncomfortable. I know it isn’t fair, but when the changes Shadowmind made were undone, all our feelings for you returned, as if we’d never left at all.”

  “I think it’s worse than that,” Gina corrected, scowling as she shifted in her chair, anguish eating at her as she thought. “It’s almost like it came back new, if that makes any sense. But yeah… we were just…”

  “They don’t deserve you,” Spark said, glowering across the table at Gina, then sniffed derisively. “They abandoned you when you needed them most. Sure, Shadowmind was in their heads, but it wasn’t the first time they did it, from what you all said. They’ve done it twice, so they’d do it again.”

  Gina’s temper flared at that accusation, and she sat up, snapping out. “And you said that you just wanted her for yourself! How’s that for being selfish?”

  Spark’s mouth opened as she inhaled, but before she could more than begin to speak, a sharp crack echoed through the room as Lilith’s hand came down on the table, and e
veryone’s attention snapped to her.

  “That’s quite enough,” Lilith said, her voice calm and even, but there was a glint in her eyes that made Gina wince. She’d only seen Lilith angry once, and while this wasn’t as bad as that day in the warehouse when Lilith had systematically destroyed Blue Impulse, she was clearly getting angrier. So, Gina kept her mouth firmly shut. On the other hand, she didn’t think anyone else had her experience in that regard, since Spark spoke a moment later.

  “But she—” Spark began, only for Lilith to glare at her, cutting the speedster off in mid-word.

  “Emily, you’re a lovely friend and someone who I normally enjoy the company of, but at the moment I’m exceedingly upset, so please let me finish,” Lilith interrupted in that same even tone. Gina saw the moment that Rachel realized what it indicated, as her old friend straightened in her chair. Lilith looked around the table again, then nodded. “Good.”

  Lilith straightened again, folding her hands behind her back, then inhaled slowly before speaking. “I see what Áine meant, about you drawing up battle lines. I’m almost to the point of giving Daemonia a call and seeing about visiting her, this annoys me so much. But that would be running away, and I refuse to do that when it appears that most of you have entirely the wrong impression about me. I think it’s time to change that.

  “I am not a prize to be fought over. I am not simply going to sit around and watch while you snipe and cause problems. I am my own person, and I am not going to tolerate you treating me like Amber does, an object to be won,” Lilith said, and Gina felt herself shrink back, the blood draining from her face at the statement. Spark looked as white as a sheet, and Rachel’s hand crept over to grasp Gina’s tightly. Even Archon was wincing as Lilith looked at them, her wings a little tighter behind her back. Lilith paused, then continued, almost conversationally. “Now, then. Gina, Rachel? I don’t know if I’m going to accept you back. My emotions are murky, and Daemonia made an excellent point to me when we met, that I should figure out what I want before diving into a relationship. I like both of you, and I was comfortable before. But at the same time, I don’t have much experience in the world, and she gave me things to think about. Emily, the same thing applies, however, if you’re going to be possessive of me, I’m not sure I’m going to be happy with it. Archon…”

  Lilith paused, then smiled slightly as she shrugged. “I’ll be honest, you’ve given me the best impression through all of this, but I’m not sure if that’s enough for me. I haven’t had the time to process everything, especially with Omega Code’s interference. I haven’t even been alive for two years at this point, after all. But beyond all else… let me make this clear, the fighting needs to stop. If it doesn’t, I’m not going to accept any of you who continue.”

  Rachel flinched, glancing at Gina, then nodded. Gina smiled nervously, feeling like she’d just been lectured by her father, and she cleared her throat before speaking again. “That’s fine with us, Lilith. I… apologize for us making you upset. I didn’t think about how it would look from your perspective.”

  “Now I know why Archon was staying out of it,” Spark said sourly, giving Gina a glare, but it was distinctly more half-hearted than before, and she sighed, nodding. “Alright, I’ll try to be better… that doesn’t mean I’m happy about them being around, though.”

  “I didn’t expect you to be,” Lilith said, turning her attention to Archon.

  “I didn’t think I was doing anything wrong, but I will concede that perhaps I should have spoken up against the adversarial behavior,” Archon said after a moment, inclining her head a little as she looked between Gina, Rachel, and Spark. “As for any potential relationship… I apologize if my actions made you uncomfortable. On a personal level, I like you quite a bit, but I do not wish to push hard. My goal is to be here should you decide that my company is appropriate, which should give you ample room to make a decision.”

  “Thank you,” Lilith said, taking a deep breath, then gave all of them a smile as she inclined her head. “Now, then. Just to be certain everyone knows now, and it doesn’t turn into an argument. I will be having Thanksgiving dinner here with Archon and Decarin, since the rest of you have people you’ll be having a meal with, and I intend to spend some time with Circe Beta before she and Claire go back to Los Angeles. No decisions have been made for Christmas or New Years, but if there’s even a hint of a competition for my time, no one is getting my company. With that, I think we’ve had our discussion. Please don’t make something this unpleasant necessary again.”

  That said, Lilith circled the table and left without another word, and Gina opened her mouth, then shut it again. The door closed behind Lilith, and she felt Rachel squeeze her hand before mumbling. “I wonder why she’s planning to spend time with Circe?”

  “I’d think it was obvious,” Archon said, climbing to her feet as she let out a sigh. “Still, this was… mild, all things being equal. At least she didn’t throw us all out.”

  “We’re the ones who she’s rooming with, she can’t throw us out.” Spark retorted, but she didn’t look happy as she examined Gina and Rachel. Eventually she asked, her voice uncertain. “Truce?”

  “I think it’s more along the lines of a mutual surrender,” Gina said, glancing at the door again, the first hint of amusement welling up inside her. “Since when was Lilith that assertive?”

  “Beats me. You should’ve seen her face when Archon picked her up on Halloween,” Spark replied, cracking a smile. “Maybe she got more motivation from being kidnapped by Omega Code?”

  “That… might have done it,” Rachel said, pausing for a few seconds, then admitted. “It’s going to be hard to adjust, reconciling her with how she is now.”

  “I’m certain you’ll manage,” Archon said and left the room. Gina sighed, then climbed to her feet.

  “They’re going to hate me,” Lilith groaned, curling up under her covers, the pillow pulled over her head.

  Lilith now knew why the movies sometimes showed children under the covers, with a pillow over their heads. It made her feel safer, and she could feel her heartbeat slowly returning to a more reasonable speed. While she’d managed to keep her emotions mostly under control while talking to the others, she was thankful they hadn’t been able to hear her heart pounding or had realized how her stomach had been tying itself into knots. She thought that it would’ve completely ruined the effect of her lecture, and she’d left before she broke down.

  Now she was in her room again. Her tiny room, which felt even smaller under the circumstances. There was so much that she regretted, so many things that she could have said better, but she’d well and truly lost her temper after Emily and Gina had started sniping at each other in front of her. Then she’d had little choice but to continue, so that she didn’t seem indecisive. It had been incredibly unpleasant.

  “Daemonia never said it would be easy,” Lilith muttered to herself, but even as she spoke she shrank a little deeper under the pillow.

  She really shouldn’t be hiding, Lilith knew that much, but she felt so much safer here, in bed. Moments later her phone buzzed and she jumped, having forgotten it was next to the bed. Lilith fumbled for it, then cautiously poked the button to see who’d sent her a message. It was a number she didn’t recognize, so after a second Lilith unlocked her phone nervously, hoping it wasn’t spam. Or worse, one of the others trying to arrange a date, she really didn’t need that right now.

  Hey, if you’d like I can get you a tour of Olympus, to see how REAL gods live. Maybe even give you an introduction to Aphrodite or Artemis if you’d like. Let me know what you think! -Apollo

  “Oh, don’t you tempt me,” Lilith muttered, and resolutely turned her phone off.

  It was far too tempting.

  Chapter 13

  Sunday, November 23rd, 2031

  Paragon Central Makerspace, Paragon City

  “I feel like a third wheel here,” Claire said, and Lilith glanced up at her, though most of her attention was on solder
ing the last linkage. It was Circe Beta who spoke for her, and the reply brought a smile to Lilith’s face.

  “You’re nothing like a wheel. Far too fleshy, and not nearly round enough,” Circe Beta said, her fingers moving her own soldering iron with precision as she connected the wires to the circuit board she’d been modifying.

  Lilith laughed, grinning as she pulled the soldering iron away from the frame, then nodded in satisfaction. “Very true, and I don’t think any of us count as wheels. I think I’m done, Circe… what do you think?”

  “One moment,” Circe said, pausing and examining the frame for a moment, then nodded in approval. “Not as sturdy as I would prefer, but molecular bonding is excessive for this project. We would also need to build the tools for such, which would take too long. I believe the arm is ready to be attached to the main chassis.”

  The three of them were in one of Paragon City’s makerspaces, a concept that fascinated Lilith now that she’d found out about them. This one was impressively outfitted, with dozens of rooms for everything from painting to robotics, and it had an amazing variety of projects being worked on inside it. When she and Circe had discussed what they should do together, the android had suggested it when Lilith mentioned that she wanted to build something for an upcoming charity auction. So here they were, building a robotic replica of Lilith’s old armor at a one-fifth scale.

  “I was more meaning that I’m not doing much good. The most I do is help trim things when the two of you miss something,” Claire said, but paused for a moment before admitting. “Though it is fascinating to see how quickly the two of you work.”