Shining Silver Souls

[Ella]

Sayer's eyes burned holes through her body, and she wanted to cover herself up or hide behind Celeste. Celeste however had other plans, striding straight over to her twin with a confidence that must have broken many hearts over the years.

Her eyes could see Ailithe bouncing anxiously next to her, her heart shining through her eyes at Nix -who was, in her defense, looking quite handsome.

"You look fabulous, Nix!" Ailithe chirped, and shuffled up next to Sayer as he began to paint Nix's back. "No, no, Sayer, you're doing it all wrong..." She continued to criticize Sayer's art as the twins occupied each other nearby. There was something... unique about their relationship, but perhaps Atlas was just thrown off because she had never seen this kind of sibling love before. She didn't speak with the majority of her siblings, granted there were many.

Atlas didn't say much as she leaned over and picked up a little bucket of blue neon paint. She curiously stuck her thumb inside, swirling it around before reaching up and smearing two lines on her cheeks. War paint, she thought fondly.

"Nix, did you want to paint me when you're done?" Ailithe sounded a little desperate, Atlas noted. She wondered how long this unrequited love had gone ignored.

"Need help, sweetheart?" Sebastian called over, and Atlas shrugged, looking down at the bucket and then at her reflection in the mirror.

"I'm not sure what to expect." Sebastian laughed at her comment, and looked back up at his twin. His hands were on her hips, and she was looking down at him with a curious look in her eyes. They seemed to communicate without speaking, and she huffed, glaring at him with matching brown eyes as if she were losing a game to him. He chuckled, smacking her on the backside before getting to his feet and approaching Atlas. He gently pried the can of paint from her small hands and stood back, eyeing her up and down. She didn't speak, feeling uncomfortable. Atlas watched Sebastian get down on one knee, much like he had before his sister. One hand on her hip and the other dipping into the blue paint, he used his finger to begin tracing stars all over Atlas' thighs, the space between the top of her boots and, pushing her dress up a bit and giving her goosebumps, up her thighs.

"Oh, that looks so cool!" Ailithe cried, clapping her hands excitedly. It was ironic -only when she was amongst humans was she finally back amongst the stars.

[Tiara]

“Fine, you do it, Aili!” Sayer said, thrusting the cup of paint and brush at Ailithe who was more than happy to take over painting Nix’s back.

“Hey, wait- Sayer!” Nix whined, as Ailithe pushed him face first down onto the bed, and straddled his hips. She had a smile that lit up her whole face. It was almost creepy.
“But Ailithe wants to help you! Plus, someone needs to paint me.” Sayer noticed that Sebastian had just about finished painting a whole galaxy on the exposed skin of Atlas’s legs and arms. The colors were swirled in such a way that her natural skin color peeking through seemed a part of the art. “Wow,” Sayer murmured in awe. “You look… Amazing, Atlas.” His eyes met hers.

“It is all Sebastian,” She said, motioning with her hands.

“But you wear it well.”

“Thank you.” She bit her lip. “Would you like me to paint you?”

Sayer grinned broadly. “Yeah, that be great!”

He watched he pick up some paint and move closer to him. She held herself as if she was afraid to get too close to him.

“What do you want me to paint?”

“Um, whatever you want.”

She nodded and painstakingly began to move the brush across his arms. The paint was cold, but began to dry almost instantly. Atlas took her time, using different colors and shapes. When she was finished with both of his arms and his face, Sayer was almost afraid to move in case he messed it up.

When he looked in the mirror, it wasn’t exactly the same skill level as Sebastian, but she had made him look otherworldly. He could only imagine what he would look like when the lights where out. The swirls of paint were reminiscent of Van Gogh’s artwork, the colors blending, but slightly off.

“Do you like it?” Atlas asked.

“It’s awesome.”

[Ella]

Atlas painted slowly, scared of messing up somehow. She wanted it to look perfect, but realized that no matter what she did, Sayer would still look wonderful. His words echoed in her mind, “You look… Amazing, Atlas.” She wanted to hear him say it over and over, in the place of hello, goodbye, good-morning and goodnight.

When he was done, she stepped back and softly placed the paint down on the dresser. A few spots trickled off the paintbrush, and she bit her lip and concentrated at wiping it off with her thumb before it dried. She continued to do this intently as the rest of them got ready, and before long all six of them were decorated in wild colours to match their wild eyes full of excitement.

"The pressures on, guys," Celeste cooed as she stood at the door. "We need to be careful. Every man -or beautiful woman, for themselves. If you get caught, you're on your own. Hug the walls and get to the port." Atlas laughed. Humans definitely knew how to use their skills efficiently. Ooh, I'm getting used to that 'sarcasm' concept...

"Phoenix, lead the way!" Ailithe pushed him ahead of her, careful not to touch the paint on his back. This left only his waist to touch, which was oddly convenient for her. "You're in charge of getting that trans-port going to the right place."

[Tiara]

The six of them weren’t the only party goers that night. In fact most everyone biologically under twenty-five and over seventeen was invited. It all started about three years ago when the ports were being reprogrammed. There was a glitch that would sometimes randomly cause the port to take you someplace other than your destination. A few tech-geeks happened to figure out the code, and discovered that if they overrode the coding, they could access the abandoned apartments which weren’t supposed to be in the directory at all.

So at least twice a month, everyone snuck over there, got drunk and partied. The pharmacologists always brought some new drug, sometimes a hallucinogenic others just something to bring you up and make everyone happy. There was always loud music and lots of alcohol.

“Hold the port for us!” Two blonde girls with skimpy, metallic outfits called out as the rest of the group tried to squeeze into the port.

Celeste groaned, and squished closer to her brother. He wrapped his arms around her, no longer worrying about the paint since it had longed dried. Everyone else moved awkwardly to accomodate the two new bodies.

“Okay. Let’s get the show on the road!” Nix rallied. When the port announced the area was restricted, he called out the pin number.

“Destination confirmed, Mary Maker.”

“This is going to be so luxe,” Ailithe said when they stepped out of the port a second later. “Your first party here at Oceanic!”

The whole place was dark except for the places where people had setup battery operated glow orbs. Music pounded, the base thumping through Sayer’s chest like an additional heart. Everywhere bodies with their glowing paint markings danced and tried to look cool.

A man painted to look like a neon skeleton came up to them. He opened his palm to reveal tiny pills that glowed blush in the darkness. “Vodka tabs anyone?” He revealed his other palm. “Or I have some Niveus Crystal.” His palm held three crystals covered in white powder.

“Oh!” Celeste squealed, clinging to Sebastian’s arm. “Let’s do some Nivvie Crystal, Bastain!”

Sebastian and the man joined their wrists to exchange currency for the drugs. “Anybody else want anything?”

Everyone spoke up with their orders. They ended up getting enough crystal and vodka tabs to split between all of them.

“Here,” Sayer said handing a button sized amount of Niveus Crystal and a vodka tablet to Atlas. “This will make you feel amazing.”

[Ella]

The music was too loud. The bass thumped in her chest, and she clutched at it as she gazed around, taking everything in. The bodies flailing around, jumping and falling and sitting, even laying on the ground in the corners of the different rooms they passed as they walked in.

The skeleton man held out a palm of medicinal pellets and Atlas felt uneasy. Her first instinct was to look to Sayer for advice, but he too was offering her something they'd crudely dubbed 'Niveus Crystal'.

"That is a horrible name," she said, but her voice was carried away before it made it to anyone's ears. With a nervous sigh, she reached out touched the drugs in his palm, tracing them around in circles for a moment. She moved closer, and without having to turn her head she watched Celeste lick a line of the same powder out of her own hand. Taking a slow breath in preparation, Atlas tried to steady her racing heart before leaning down and dragging her tongue slowly from the knuckle of Sayer's middle finger to his palm, swooping up half the dose he clasped in his hand. It was unnecessary, but the crowd and the music was making her a bit light headed and reckless.

It took a moment for the drugs to kick in, and for the time being she gazed around the room, not leaving Sayer's presence. She felt safer near him than on her own. Ailithe was clutching Nix's elbow, her eyes wide and smile wider.

[Tiara]

As the drugs began to kick in for Sayer, he watched Atlas. In the dim light, he couldn’t see her pupils expand to practically take outer her entire iris, or the she almost seemed to float off the concrete floor. They seemed to work almost imidantly for her.

“How are you feeling?” He asked her, pulling her close enough to speak into her ear.

“I feel…” She seemed amazed by something going through her head. “I feel fucking fabulous!” She yelled. The dancing bodies, grinding against each other seemed to catch her interest.

Sayer laughed “You wanna dance?”

Atlas nodded her head vigorously. She grabbed Sayer’s hand, and pulled him into the mass of neon. The nivvie crystal and vodka seemed to loosen her up. Sayer had never seen her move so fluidly. Normally she was rigid and stiff. Now she grabbed at his hips and he responded by pulling him so their bodies connected.

The synthetic and computerized notes flew through them. The two of them danced through the next couple of songs, before Sayer finally suggested they take a break and go find the others.

“Can’t leave Nix and Ailithe alone too long, or she’ll attack him!” Sayer joked.

Atlas said something, but he couldn’t hear her.

They found Nix sitting in an empty jacuzzi tub in one of the apartments with about eight other people, mostly guys. Ailithe was one of two girls, and she practically sat in Phoenix’s lap. Nix seemed oblivious of her as he caressed the guy beside him’s thigh while the debated passionately.

“Oh, hiya Thayer and A’las!” Ailithe cried, throwing her hands up in the air. “We’re swimming!”

[Ella]

When Atlas was pressed against Sayer, moving back and forth to the beat that rocked the floor, she felt weird feelings she'd never felt before. Tingling sensations, beads of sweat from either her or him or the people dancing too close to them, and an aching in her lips begging to be tended to. The drugs only made these feelings stronger, and Atlas didn't know what to do with them. She had a hard time focusing on the faces around her, much less her bizarre body.

She nodded at Sayer's suggestion to check on Ailithe and Nix. "And maybe go somewhere with less hu- Er, people!" she called out, but he didn't hear her, and she didn't bother repeating herself. She was too busy watching the neon paint move in waves around her as they weaved through the crowd.

Phoenix and Ailithe were in an empty bathtub with some others she didn't know. Atlas didn't understand what they were doing there. Giggling, she plopped down onto her knees and crossed her arms on the ledge, resting her chin while watching the drugged-up humans touch each other. Atlas scanned the wall ahead of her, her gaze moving to the right ever so slowly until she spotted some words scrawled on the white, unfinished wall in black spray paint. It was hard to see in the dark for humans, but Atlas could read it loud and clear.

Fuck Nivvies!
Someone had added beneath it in their own unique chicken-scratch, Eliminate the Aliens! A cartoon character holding an 8-bit style gun was shooting at what Atlas presumed to be a Nivean. Or, someones rendition of one. Its white eyes took up most of its face, with a gaping mouth and a stick body with three arms on each side. Its stringy hair stood straight up. FREAK was added just under its feet, and Atlas felt like she could vomit. She slowly got to her feet and approached the wall. The drugs were making the words and pictures pulse in time with her heart, and all she could do was stare.

[Tiara]

Sayer perched on the ledge of the tub. One moment, Atlas was beside him, and the next she was gone. He looked up to see her touching graffiti on the walls. He was just about to get up and ask her what she was doing when the Sebastian came through the open doorway. Celeste tagged along beside him, her arm’s wrapped around his waist. The two managed to move without look utterly ridiculous and not falling over. Celeste was clearly out of her mind, high, and soaring over the stars. Sebastian didn’t look much better.

“Anyone up to shoot some stars?” He asked, holding up a silver lunch tote.

Everyone was in agreement, and Sebastian sat down cross-legged on the unfinished floor. Opening the bag, he pulled out a baggy of yellowish powder, a spoon, a lighter and a needless syringe.

“Dude, me first!” Nix said, jumping up. The guy beside him looked peeved that he had left him behind.

“Me, too!” Ailithe chimed in. Of course, she wanted to do whatever Nix did.

“Sayer, what about you man?” Sebastian asked, holding the lighter under the spoon. The powder began to melt, and the smell was sweet and chemically at the same time.

“Yeah, I guess.” Sayer placed his hand on Atlas’s shoulder. “Atlas?”

[Ella]

Atlas closed her eyes and rested her forehead against the wall, taking a moment to collect herself. She couldn't let this get to her. Vandalism meant nothing, even if it moved.

More drugs. These humans could withstand anything. Ailithe was leaning over the edge of the tub, her body angled toward Sebastian.

"Faster, Bastian, faster!" she squeaked. Celeste was leaning against his side, her arms wrapped around his neck as she stared gleefully at the boiling drugs. Atlas watched them from her spot, not turning around in fear of causing Sayer to move his hand. Eventually he did, joining the others for the injection.

Ailithe flopped backward in the tub, squeezing her eyes shut in anticipation for the drug to set in. With a low, grumbling laugh, the stranger in there with her leaned over and grabbed her chin, murmuring something Ailithe found absolutely hilarious and littering the side of her face with little kisses.

"Phoenix, oh, Phoenix, you've gotta feel this! It's like a bunch of little butterflies!" she squealed. Everything she said was long and accentuated with an unseen exclamation point. She stretched her arms out to him like a child to her mother, waiting for him to join her as the strange young man continued to kiss her, his kisses moving down to her neck.

Meanwhile, Atlas reached her arm out and allowed the drugs to enter her virgin system, giving a dragged-out sigh as it hit her almost immediately. Without warning, she called out to nobody in particular, "I CAN... I CAN..."

"Party trick, huh, sweetheart?" Sebastian chuckled, eyeing her as he injected himself. She nodded excitedly, unable to let it slip off her tongue. She rushed to the doorway and called to an eager audience, "I CAN TELEPORT MY SOUL!" There were a multitude of gasps and urges to show her skill. Atlas squeezed her eyes closed and clenched her fists at her sides. A moment passed, and someone at the back of the crowd called out, "I see it! Guys, over there!" Minutes of frantic searching ensued, before Atlas finally gave up, laughing sheepishly and walking back to her group of friends.

Friends.

[Tiara]

SPOILER: Click to show

Recommended Music
Another Love (Zwette Edit) by Tom Odell

As the drugs flowed through everyone’s veins, things began to get wild. Atlas tried to teleport her soul, which was fun, but then Sayer became worried she would lose it and it would be gone forever. 

Someone else tried to one-up the trick, but no one bothered to pay attention to the loser. Celeste clung to her brother, and when ever a guy came over to talk to her, or a girl came to ask him to dance, they ignored them. The two of them were so wrapped up in each other.

“Dude, Nix-“ Sayer started, but stopped when he saw some guy with shoulder length blond hair kiss Ailithe then move to kiss Phoenix. Ailithe sat on Nix’s lap, he back against his chest, and the other guy, Finn, (if Sayer remembered correctly) kneeled in front of her. His hands looked abnormally large as they palmed her breasts through her ghostly white top.

The three of them didn’t seem to notice the others around them, some locked in embraces and others just staring with wide eyes as the drugs addled their brains. Sayer watched, enrapture of his two friends in a menage a trio. He couldn’t understand why Ailithe wasn’t crying her eyes out because her heart was broken.

Like quicksilver, Ailithe’s shirt was lifted over head and tossed carelessly over the edge of the tub, and she was kneeling to undo the zipper of Finn’s fly.

Finally Sayer caught Nix’s eye. Nix threw him a huge, goofy grin and pointed at Finn and Ailithe. ‘A THREESOME!’ He mouthed.

[Ella]

Atlas froze. What were they doing? Was this the moment she'd read about in books? Was this what she had to look forward to with 5-3000? She couldn't imagine him wearing the same euphoric face that Nix and the other boy bore. She couldn't imagine her being touched and lavished the way Ailithe was. Atlas was burning with jealousy.

Sitting on her knees, she rested a few feet away and simply stared at the... whatever she was observing. Sex. Sex. Sex. Sex. Sex. Atlas tore her eyes away from it for a moment to acknowledge a new presence in the room. Some human boy, holding his hand out to her. She wasn't interested -she wanted to keep watching, see what happened. The hand didn't go away, but rather it leaned down and hooked around her arm. She was wrenched up from her spot on the floor and found herself in the arms of this boy she'd never seen before. Squinting at his face, she tried to figure out what he looked like, but his mouth was by his ears and his nose was sticking out of his forehead.

"You look funny," she gurgled. His laughter sloshed around in her brain, and she scrunched her face at the unpleasant noise. "Go away." He didn't leave, however. His grip remained firm on her slumped body, and she poked him as rough as she could in the shoulder. "I said go away. Go to, over there. Go to there. Away."

What was tickling her neck? And her stomach? Atlas squirmed as the boy's mouth helped himself to her collar bone, his hands pulling her dress up her body and grasping firmly at her ass.

"I can see your booty, girl!" Celeste called to her through hearty laughter. Sebastian's laughter mimicked hers almost to a tee.

The boy's finger pulled at the waistband of her panties, and Atlas had had enough. "Do you know who I am? I am the daughter of a very important woman!" she huffed, hitting the boy in the side of the head as hard as her rubbery arms permitted.

[Tiara]

There was so much going on. Kissing, the smell of arousal, laughter, shouting. Sayer had a hard time keeping his brain on one level. It kept wanting to float away like a cloud.

He heard Atlas’s crystalline voice cry out like shards of glass breaking. His eyes finales settled on her got an eye full of her round, perky ass on display fro everyone to see. He smiled, and thought of how pretty her ass was. It was sexy.

Sayer’s thoughts degraded from there. Watching Nix and Ailithe, both of them wearing expressions of ecstasy as they exchanged caresses and kiss with Finn, Sayer found his attention trapped on them again.

Meanwhile, Celeste and Sebastian did another round nivvie crystal, and whispered in each other’s ears secrets they would never share with anyone else. Sebastian wound Celeste’s long dark locks around his hand, and every once in a while held it up to show her. Bastian swore he could see all of her thoughts hidden in the curls.

Things progressed with the threesome in the tub. Nix’s head dipped out of Sayer’s line of vision, and Finn had one hand on the back of Phoenix’s head, and the other on Ailithe’s neck as she kissed and nipped at his neck.

“Atlas?” Sayer called out. He tried to look around for her, but didn’t want to miss any of the action in the tub.

“She left,” Celesete giggled. “Here, have more.” She held out a palmful of nivvie crystal. Sayer licked it up. When the drugs hit his system, he blacked out.

***
“Come on, man. Use your legs to walk!” Sayer didn’t understand. The world went black again.

***
“Good morning, Sayer. It is now time to rise, and start the day.” Sayer didn’t stir. The bio chip registered him as still in rem sleep. Scout’s software was programmed to repeat the action twice more in thirty second intervals. If that didn’t work, a loud blast of a trumpet would be blasted.

The trumpet was required.

“Wha-“ Sayer cried sitting up. He grabbed his head and groaned.

[Ella]

Why was her mouth so wet? Was she drooling? Atlas couldn't see anything anymore. Everything was colours. It made her think of the trees from her home planet -so bright and wispy, always moving. She'd been a little girl then, defenseless and naive. She felt that way now, in the arms of some boy from some place for some reason.

Atlas squirmed. Her butt was cold. "Leave me be! Leave me be!" Why did she have to be so stuck? Couldn't someone make her unstuck? "Sayer? Sayer? Saaaayer, Sayer," she panted. The man holding her said something, but it sounded like nonsense and it only made Atlas angry. Why wasn't Sayer doing anything? Didn't he like her? Why didn't Sayer like her? Was it because she wasn't human? Was it because she wasn't pretty?

Four arms came down from the sky and swooped her up, and she was shuffled through tunnels of neon-coloured torsos. "I want out! I want out of here!" she called out to the arms. A familiar, husky laugh rung through her head, and Atlas grinned. "Thanks Celeste. Thanks Sebastian. You two are wonderful. I hope you don't die, ever."

The trans-port was too small for Atlas, she couldn't breathe. "Dormitory. I mean, my dormitory," she commanded, her words a big jumble as they fell from her lips. Somehow she got where she needed to be, stumbling out of the port. She collided with a wall, a big warm wall that caught her as she tripped over her own ankle.

"Private White?"

"Atlas. Or Attie. Or At. Or Ahhhh...." she sighed, wrapping her arms around the wall's neck. The wall shook, laughing at her.

"You've had quite the night, haven't you, Atlas?" She nodded excitedly.

"I. Saw. Sex." The wall shook again, its hands moving down to her waist as he guided her to the left. Or was it the right? Where was she going?

"Which dorm is yours, Atlas?" She gave him the number. A number. She hoped it was the right one. Moments later, she felt herself flying through the air, guided only by two strong gusts of wind in the shape of arms. The wall rested her on her bed, unclipping her hair from the mess it had become atop her head. She felt two hands touching the sides of her face, and she swatted them away.

"Sleepy, Commander. Sleepy Commander. Commander, are you sleepy?"

"Oh, Atlas. You're quite the trouble maker, aren't you..." Atlas snorted in laughter. "See me after class tomorrow to discuss this little endeavor of yours." Atlas groaned in protest, but Fawke interrupted her. "I know your secret. It'd be in your best interest to meet with me."

Atlas hadn't noticed through her haze, but he'd been holding her wrists to her chest very, very tight. A click of the door signaled to her that it was time to rest. As she slowly drifted into unconsciousness, she tossed a thought in the direction of Sayer, wondering if he missed her.

[Tiara]

Just like it always the day after one of the drug-filed parties, everyone was off. Most people wore tinted contact lenses to spare their hangover, and Sayer was no exception. His head hurt like a motherfucker, and he was mad at himself for not controlling himself last night.

He decided to skip his politics and government class to try and sleep it off. Life had other plans.

“Sayer? It’s Ailithe, can I come in?”

Sayer gave Scout the command to open the door, and Ailithe slunk inside like a whipped puppy. Her face was blotchy, and she looked like she hadn’t slept at all.

“Ailithe? What’s wrong?” Sayer motioned for her to sit on the foot of his bed. “Have you been crying?”

“Mhmm,” she murmured, nodding. She wiped her nose with a wrinkly tissue. “It’s Phoenix. I just don’t understand! I do everything I can. I try to be supportive, and I tried to just move on. But I can’t!” She wailed. “And then… And then last night. We, you know.” Sayer shock his head and tried to deny it. “I know you were watching us, Sayer.” Ailithe sighed. “I tried to pretend it was just Nix and I, and Finn wasn’t there, but…” Her lower lip wobbled, and she burst into fresh tears.

Sayer wasn’t sure what to say. “You know Nix is gay, right, Ailithe? He likes gu-“

“I know he fucking likes fucking guys!” Ailithe screamed. “I am not as stupid as you guys think I am, okay. I’ve known forever.”

“Then why do you keep yourself hung up on him if you know that it is never going to happen?” Sayer asked.

“Because I just love him. I can’t help it.” She blew her nose loudly. “I’d do anything to be with him. I’d put up with him seeing guys, and knowing that last night might be the closest we ever got to actually having sex, just the two of us. If only he would love me, and never leave me.” She sniffled, and wiped at her nose again. “I need you to talk to him and make him see, Sayer.”

“Uh, Ailithe… I don’t kno-“

“This is my only chance, Sayer! You have to help me. I can’t lose him. This morning he was talking about seeing Finn again! Without me!”

[Ella]

TRIGGER WARNING: Sexual Assault

Atlas dragged her pale finger tip along the porcelain rim of the toilet, staring at it as she breathed as deep as she could to regulate the flow of vomit. Considering she hadn't eaten anything for breakfast and had been hugging the bathroom floor since Ailithe snuck out the door, she knew she was only puking stomach acid any any remnants of the chemicals in her system. Taking a deep breathe, she commanded Louie to tell her the time. She'd missed a large portion of her combat training class, which she was glad for. She would have only made herself more ill by going. However she could still remember Commander Fawke telling her to meet him after class. Grumbling, she pushed herself up and flushed the toilet. Pulling on a baggy hoodie, black leggings and unlaced boots, Atlas slipped out the door.

She kept her head low as she walked against the flow of people coming from class. When she entered the gymnasium, Fawke was leaning back against his desk, arms crossed and brows furrowed. She couldn't even force an apology.

"I wasn't feeling well this morning, sir."

"No doubt."

"What was it you wanted to discuss? Pardon me if I don't remember the specifics of our conversation." Atlas gazed around the empty room, wishing they could get the scolding over with so she could go back to her dorm and rest.

Commander Fawke straightened up and got in her face, taking her by surprise. "I know you're not human." Atlas's neck stiffened and she stared the man dead in the eye. His lips turned up in a snarling smirk, and she began to shake.

"I don't know... what you mean..."

Fawke scoffed, tapping her shoulder with the back of his hand. "The way you move, your skin, the way you talk, I've seen it all before. You have no idea what you're doing, or what you've gotten yourself in to." He leaned closer to her, his eyes taking up most of her vision. "You've fallen far down the rabbit hole, Alice."

Atlas gulped, moving to take a step back before he stopped her, grabbing a rough hold of her upper arm. "I'm sure you were just young when it happened, so I'll give your innocence in this a grain of salt." If she hadn't been so stunned, she would have been furious. "But I lost a lot of good men in that conflict. Why I'm still here is because you aliens didn't do a very good job of playing God."

Atlas wanted to leave, to pretend this had never happened and go back to her plan as usual. But now things were complicated. She should have factored in the war veterans and their capacity for grudges. She could see the memories passing in front of his eyes. He looked at her and saw the entire Niveus race, and he wanted revenge.

"You're going to kill us all anyway, aren't you... Atlas..." His voice suddenly changed, soft and purposeful. Every movement his mouth made was rooted in his beliefs, his fatalist depression. "I know you're smart. And you're tough. And you're pretty. That's a toxic combination."

"What do you want from me," she spat, puffing out her chest like a proud rooster. Fawke stared her down, an unreadable expression on his face.

"Just one favour."

"What?"

"Don't scream, Nivvie. Don't breathe a word of this to anyone, and your secret will be safe with me."

Maybe if she hadn't been so weak from the night before, she would have been able to put up a fight. Maybe if she hadn't snubbed Sayer, he would have come looking for her when she hadn't shown up to class. Maybe if she'd been satisfied with marrying 5-3000 and living a dull life with him, she would have been home, safe and sound. Pure. Instead she found herself groaning against the top of Fawke's desk, bent at a painful 90 degree angle as he took her. Her body was wracked with pain, and tears streamed down her face and trickled over his fingers as they held her mouth. She knew they would bruise her lips, as her skin was so frail and prone to bruising.