Threshold of Annihilation

by T. A. White

More and more beams joined the rest. Soon, Kira had no choice but to eliminate some. Otherwise, she would have had no room to move within her box.

  The near-constant bzzt of destroyed beams kept her company as the difficulty level increased. Now, the beams didn't come from only directly in front of her, but the sides and back as well.

  Knowing they could come from any direction, Kira flung her senses wide, cognizant of any changes in the environment around her.

  Five beams closed in on her at once. Kira pushed off her toes, spinning horizontally in the air. Her light sword whipped out, destroying the two under her, before she completed the rotation, using her momentum to eliminate the two beams above her in the same motion.

  The water walls of the cube rippled, mimicking waves. Beam after beam left their depths in a kaleidoscope of color.

  The furor in the crowd beyond fell on deaf ears as Kira immersed herself in the game, the only thing that mattered was the next sequence of movements.

  Kira swung her arm, destroying a beam that had already rebounded six times. She knew her limits. Once it had touched the walls seven times, she wouldn't be able to keep up. Not with how far into the game she was.

  Seeing the light beams converging on her once again, she turned and dashed to the wall, planting a foot and kicking off the wall as she flipped backward over the beams.

  When they rebounded toward her chest, she snapped her blade up, cutting through their middles in an efficient, clean strike.

  The crowd roared as Graydon flipped over his own set of beams, his big body surprisingly lithe.

  He bared his teeth as his blade nearly blurred with his quickness.

  Sensing danger, Kira darted forward, her knees hitting the ground as her back bowed. The sleek arrow-like beam passed an inch above her. Completing her slide, Kira gained her footing, knocking two beams away from her.

  There was no reprieve, a dozen beams rebounding toward her from several directions. Kira danced away from the first four, her blade cleaving through three of them.

  Her back hit a wall.

  A warning sparked in her mind. Pink bloomed above her shoulder.

  There was nowhere to go with the beams heading for her in an inevitable collision.

  Kira spun, her blade breaking two of the beams. If nothing else, she'd try to get as many points as she could.

  The pink coalesced, the beam shooting out an instant before the rest would have reached Kira's blade.

  There was a high hum as the beams and the stage dissolved around her.

  SIXTEEN

  A HUSH FELL as the audience waited for the final outcome.

  Kira blinked at her chest, expecting to see splotches of white, signaling her demise. Her clothing remained unmarred, its surface still perfect.

  Impossible.

  Kira twisted, trying to get a glimpse of her shoulder. No white there either.

  In disbelief, she glanced at Graydon. His expression held chagrin as he stared at his foot like it had betrayed him.

  A spot of white on the tip destroyed the perfection of the otherwise spotless black synth armor.

  She exhaled.

  It wasn't her. She didn't get the penalty. Graydon had.

  A snort of amusement escaped Kira. She slapped a hand over her mouth, her eyes laughing up at Graydon’s.

  She couldn't help it. His expression was priceless. A little sulky; a lot insulted. It was something Kira had never thought she'd see on the Emperor's Face.

  "What happened?" she gasped. "Did one jump up and bite you?"

  Graydon rolled his big shoulders as his chin lifted, his dignity already damaged. "Apparently, I misjudged a flip."

  Kira lost it, bending nearly double as she could no longer contain her laughter.

  "Are you done?" Graydon asked.

  Kira paused then shook her head, holding her stomach when it started to hurt.

  Graydon leaned down, his jaw brushing her hair. "I'm so glad you're enjoying this."

  Kira's laughter dried up at the hint of threat in his tone. She gulped down any further amusement, drying the corners of her eyes.

  "Very good." Graydon's smile was slow and decadent. "Let's see who won."

  Kira straightened. That’s right, the victor hadn’t been determined yet.

  Although Graydon had fouled out and sustained a penalty, it didn't necessarily place the win in her hands. In the end, it came down to the accumulated points. There was a chance his overall score would still exceed hers.

  Kira focused on the holographic score board suspended over the stage they stood on.

  The icon for barrage flashed once and then two scores.

  The match was hers.

  Graydon's hand landed on the small of her back, its warmth burning through the material of her shirt. Kira forced herself not to tremble, her heightened awareness of this man making the moment feel more important than it was.

  "I'm looking forward to the favor you claim." Graydon's low voice stirred her hair. "Perhaps it will involve another moonlit swim."

  Unbidden, images flashed in Kira's mind. The way Graydon looked with silvery light caressing his skin, his chest bare as beads of water ran down it. The desire when he looked at her. The feel of his lips and skin under hers.

  Kira stuffed those images back in their box, forcing herself to seem unaffected as she walked toward the edge of the stage. "I worked hard for this favor. I wouldn't waste it on something like that."

  "You never know what the future might bring,” Graydon murmured.

  Kira rolled her eyes. Somehow, she thought she’d manage to avoid the temptation of his irresistible self.

  "You're awfully presumptuous," Kira told him.

  Graydon gave her a look of mock surprise. "You think so? I'm not so sure. There's something between us. You can deny it all you want, but we both know this is happening."

  "Now, you've made it a challenge. You know how much I love those."

  Graydon's expression didn't waver. "That's all right. I've always enjoyed the pursuit."

  "Perhaps that's the problem. Not everybody loves being chased."

  Sometimes it just made them want to run and hide. Kira wasn't so good at the second, but she'd always excelled at the first.

  Graydon's eyes gentled as he reached up, tucking one errant strand of hair behind her ear. The watching audience seemed to fade around them, unimportant for the moment. "It's good then that I prefer what comes after the catch."

  Kira held her breath as his fingers trailed along the outer rim of her ear before ghosting over her jaw in a faint caress.

  "Whatever type of pursuit you want, I will adjust to match," he told her.

  "Why?" Kira's gaze searched his.

  She wanted to believe in him. She really did, but something held her back.

  Graydon didn't answer as he considered her, his expression enigmatic. "Because a woman like you deserves it."

  Kira looked down. "You won't want me when all the truths have been revealed."

  Graydon leaned forward. "Bet me. We both know you rarely lose."

  He turned his gaze toward the scoreboard. Kira blinked as the list of Allstars scrolled past, their two scores climbing the ranks. They stopped at the number two and three spots.

  Murmurs filled the air as those present read the name in first place. It was the same as the second-place name. Sparrow.

  "Well played, lovely Sparrow," Graydon said, stepping off the playing stage.

  Kira rolled her lips between her teeth, trying to conceal her smile.

  They couldn’t blame her for their assumptions. They sought to take advantage of a kitten only to realize too late she was a full-grown saber tooth tiger.

  "A ringer," Lorcan said.

  To her surprise, he didn't sound angry. Instead his voice was speculative as if she'd surprised him in an interesting way.

  "You cheated," Niland accused.

  Kira's gaze swung toward him. "How so? I never said I couldn't play. You made assumptions, and now those as
sumptions have bitten you on the ass. As an oshota, you should know better."

  Lorcan smothered a snicker, his face smoothing out when Niland glared at him.

  "The Emperor's Face allowed you to win," Niland accused.

  If he sought death, Kira was only too willing to help him out. With that in mind, she glanced up at Graydon. "He's questioning your honor. Are you going to allow that?"

  He sent her a look that said he knew what she was doing, and it wasn't going to work.

  "You should teach him some manners," Kira continued, not paying attention to the increasing rage in Niland's face. "I'll wait."

  Graydon didn't budge. "But it's so much more fun annoying you than playing with them."

  Kira realized she'd lost this game.

  With nothing left to do but retreat, she started toward the large entrance Joule and Devon had disappeared into. "Come on, Roddy. Let's go find Joule and Liara."

  Roderick trailed after her. "You know my name isn't Roddy, right?"

  Kira gasped. "No! Are you sure?"

  His glare said he didn't find this nearly as amusing as she did.

  Kira sobered. She supposed she shouldn't torture him too much. After all, he had had a hard time of it.

  "And to think I've been calling you that in my mind this entire time."

  Roderick eyed her with something Kira would call respect if she didn't know better. "You're a difficult person."

  She shrugged, well aware of her habits. "How's my cousin?"

  "I didn't think you'd care since you broke ties with us."

  Kira glanced at him in surprise. "I severed ties only because I didn't want to see them used as a noose to control me."

  "And how is that going? You think Roake will let you go?" A harsh snort came from Roderick. "They're even more possessive than Luatha."

  "I'll admit there were miscalculations on my part."

  How could she know that her father came from an equally significant House or that Roake would cling so tenaciously to his daughter?

  She waved a hand. "We've come to a tentative agreement."

  Granted, it required Kira jumping through more than one hoop, and she’d be an idiot if she didn't realize Harlow was counting on her wanting to stay at the end of all this.

  Roderick regarded her with skepticism. "Does their Overlord know about this agreement?"

  "It was his idea."

  Sort of, at least.

  Despite his clear doubt, Roderick didn't say anything as they joined the teeming mass of people heading for inside.

  Spying other Luatha oshota in the stands, Roderick gave Kira a sharp nod. "I'll take my leave."

  For a second, Kira debated offering her assistance in case Liara ever needed it. She held back for one reason. Luatha was as proud as Roake. It was within the realm of possibility that such an offer could be seen as an insult.

  For now, her actions today were all she could do for them.

  Everything she’d said and done would be seen and dissected. The Tuann would realize there wasn't the enmity between Luatha and Kira they had thought. It should give Liara a little breathing room. If not, Kira would have to think of a different way to address this.

  Graydon’s penetrating stare as Roderick made his way toward the other members of Luatha had Kira tilting her head at him. "What?"

  "For a person who fought so hard to escape Luatha's clutches, you went a long way to saving their reputation," he observed.

  "I never said I hated them," Kira said, her gaze sweeping over the stadium and settling on the matches taking place on the stadium floor.

  The scene was chaotic, over a dozen matches happening at once.

  Despite that, it didn’t take long for Kira to spot the person she had come to see. When she did, she couldn't help but frown.

  Joule stood in the middle of a board that faintly resembled the Go board of ancient Earth, only considerably larger. There were nineteen rows and nineteen columns of tiny squares forming a much larger one.

  The objective of the game was to claim territory. To do that, you had to conquer a square on the board. Each one you occupied resulted in a point. However, if your enemy completely surrounded your pieces with their own, you lost the points for that territory.

  That's where the similarity to Go ended.

  Castles was a game that relied as much on mental strategy as it did physical. Instead of stones to claim a position, the competitor had to wager their own skills. Only by defeating the square’s test could they take it over.

  Sometimes these tests were similar to what Kira had faced in Barrage—a series of laser fire you had to return or avoid. Other times they were logic problems you had to solve in a fixed time limit.

  There was no concept of turns in Castles either. The faster you could defeat the square, the more of an advantage you would have.

  If you attempted to conquer a square and failed, you would be frozen in place for a set time, giving your opponent a considerable advantage.

  Not only that, but opponents could launch non-lethal attacks against each other. If they scored a direct hit, the square would automatically become theirs.

  When a territory was surrounded by the enemy, its ownership would change to that enemy.

  From the looks of things, Joule and his opponent were pretty evenly matched. The number of squares each had lit up was comparable.

  Kira had always known what Joule lacked in physical prowess he made up for with his strategic mind.

  That was likely why he'd elected to lay claim on the section of the board generally predisposed to logic problems.

  It wasn’t a bad strategy, but if he didn't conquer some of the physical-based squares soon, he'd fall into the trap his opponent had so carefully laid.

  Graydon touched her elbow, guiding her toward a set of stairs that led up to the upper echelon where the private boxes of the wealthy and powerful waited.

  Kira didn't argue as they left the lower stands, the echo of their footsteps swallowed by the thick carpet lining the hallway.

  Graydon stopped at an elegant door, opening it, and stepping inside.

  Kira followed, hesitating slightly when she saw who waited inside.

  Raider looked up with a frown from where he had claimed a spot on the side to watch the matches.

  Before Kira could react, a shape flew toward her.

  "Kira! You're finally here!" Jin cried. "I've been waiting so long."

  She batted Jin away, hitting only air as he circled her. "What are you doing here?"

  He was supposed to be watching Elena. Not gallivanting around where anybody could see and link him to Kira.

  Jin put a little bit of space between them.

  His tinny voice came to her through their comms. "MinMin is watching Elena. There were things I needed to investigate outside."

  Her glare deepened. That excuse failed to explain his presence here.

  Jin's feelings of frustration traveled through their bond. "Raider caught me as soon as I exited the villa. The meatsack has gotten smarter. He used Wren's presence to entrap me. If I hadn't come up with the excuse of meeting you here, I think they would have tried dismantling me."

  Kira didn't know what to think about Raider's interference. Jin was her eyes and ears. While she drew the majority of attention to herself most times, he snuck around the outskirts, gathering what they needed to destroy those who intended them harm.

  It was a partnership that took advantage of people's preconceptions. They relegated Jin to the role of a mere drone, incapable of separate thought and action.

  Most ended up regretting that oversight.

  Unfortunately, Raider knew her playbook. Jin was the first person he’d look to if he wanted to disrupt Kira’s agenda.

  Raider’s guarded expression offered her no insight into his thoughts, either.

  Stowing her questions for now, Kira took the opportunity to study the other occupants in the room. In addition to Raider, Wren and his oshota sprawled in their seats, observing the
match.

  In the corner, Yukina and her oshota sat quietly by themselves, their presence unobtrusive.

  Furor from below pulled Kira’s attention to the matches. Joule walked off the board, defeated.

  She didn’t think that was what had caused the upset, however. A quick scan showed her a board where one side had managed an overwhelming victory, completely crushing their opponent.

  Jin hovered over Kira’s shoulder. "What is that?”

  Below, the source of the fuss calmly regarded the audience. Its features were smooth, no hint of expression disturbing them. Its eyes couldn’t hide the cerulean glow of its processor. Although it had a mouth and ears, no one would ever mistake it for being a biological, not with a metal exoskeleton covering its sexless body.

  Yukina put down her tea, her eyes cold as she stared at the android. "Something needs to be done to check the Consortium’s growing arrogance.”

  Graydon hummed an agreement.

  "Jin?"

  They'd known each other too long for him not to know what she wanted. "There's too much distance. I'd need to get far closer to get an accurate scan."

  "Who was the android’s sponsor?" Kira asked.

  "Zepher," Yukina said, picking up her tea again.

  Kira didn't know whether to applaud their arrogance or get busy digging them a grave.

  The Consortium had agreed to certain restrictions on avenues of research, among them bioengineering and the advancement of artificial intelligence. With this act, Zepher was not just flaunting the treaty between the Consortium and the Haldeel, they were showing they’d already broken it.

  “Himoto’s going to have a conniption,” Jin said.

  “If he doesn’t know already,” Kira responded.

  Having the Haldeel threaten to cut ties could give Himoto the political power he needed to clean house, but that was only if the rest of the Consortium agreed the treaty was worth maintaining.

  If that was Himoto’s game, he was taking a huge risk.

  "I'm surprised the Haldeel haven't stopped this," Zoella said, her expression giving away her unease.

  "It's the quorum. They’ll allow the humans to hang themselves with their own rope." Yukina’s expression was as still as a frozen lake as she surveyed the scene.

  Her assessment perfectly summed up the Haldeel’s methods. They rarely let you know when you had overstepped until long after you had already waded into dangerous waters and there was no way back.