* * *
Remi woke up in a hot dimly lit room. It was bare. There were no windows and there was only one door that had no doorknob. It was made entirely of bricks like the town, but she didn’t feel comfortable here. Not even when her eyes adjusted and she saw that everyone else was with her. She wasn’t sure if that was a good or bad thing.
Kace was sitting up against the wall to her left, hunched over his knees. Olivia stood in the center of the room with her arms crossed. Eckard and Scarlet sat side by side to her right, cross-legged and patient. They had to have known what was going on more than anyone.
“She’s awake,” Olivia said, noticing movement coming from Remi. “Now can you tell us what’s going on?”
“We’re prisoners,” Scarlet said. “Because we broke a universal rule.”
“Which was?”
“We killed someone that wasn’t marked.”
“What does that mean?” Remi asked. Her voice was raspy.
“The war is going to happen, but not yet. However, that doesn’t mean there isn’t moves to be made and preparation going on in the background. We live in a time where death means utter annihilation and so everyone’s scared. To ensure that there isn’t all-out chaos, the marking system has been implemented and agreed upon by both Paragon and Cimmerian. Every year, a hundred individuals may be targeted. Cimmerian may target a hundred people from Paragon and vice versa. These hundred are ‘marked,’ and what that means is that they can be killed without repercussions. Usually important people for each side are the ones targeted.”
“Why doesn’t someone just target the King of Paragon?” Kace asked.
“Because someone has to mark you, and no one’s going to make it to the King easily. I’m sure many have tried, but you would have to navigate through all of Paragon to get there. You can be assured that the King of Cimmerian has the same protections.”
“What did they put on me?” Remi asked.
“It’s the equivalent to being branded. The gel is mostly harmless but once it’s applied to skin, it sears it instantly, leaving a permanent mark. It was crafted by a Sage in Paragon so that others couldn’t heal and remove it, no matter how hard they tried.”
“So I’m stuck like this?”
“Afraid so. No one’s going to harm you here in the Corps station. But once you go outside…if anyone from Cimmerian sees you, they might go after you.”
“Special once again,” Olivia muttered. Kace sucked his teeth.
“If I was marked…that means Cimmerian or at least someone from Cimmerian knows about me.”
“I did say that us being watched was possible,” Scarlet said.
“There’s really no way to remove this?”
“Not that I know of. But you never know.”
“So what happens now?” Kace asked. “Now that someone without a mark has been killed?”
The door to the room opened wide with a creak and the man who had first addressed them earlier appeared. He wasn’t wearing his sash anymore, but they recognized him immediately. The large scar running across his face was identification enough.
“This doesn’t look good for you all,” he said truthfully, letting the door close behind him. “Everyone…please sit on the far wall.”
They all stood up and adjusted, sitting next to each other on the far wall so that the Corpsman could face them while maintaining some distance. He cleared his throat.
“My name is Redder, and I’m the chief of Surmount’s Corps. I’ve been part of this squad since the beginning…and I have never had to deal with a case like this. Do you understand what will happen if Cimmerian determines that Surmount was a part of this? If they believe that we’re trying to cover something up?”
“The war begins,” Scarlet said.
He nodded. “Yes. It will be the beginning of the end. And I’m especially cross because Surmount had nothing to do with this incident. It would be different if we had decided on this collectively, but that just isn’t the case. Do you know what this means?”
“There will have to be an exchange,” Scarlet said straight-faced. “Retribution.”
“That’s right. A trade. A life for a life. Nothing less will do. Now, I’m sorry to put you in this predicament, but a decision has to be made, and quickly. I’ll leave you be for a few minutes while you sort out who. I’ll be right back.”
Redder left the room, and once the door closed behind him, Scarlet started chuckling under her breath.
“What’s so funny?” Kace scoffed in disbelief. “This isn’t a laughing matter.”
“Just the irony of it all,” Scarlet said. “Before I died last time…I was in a cell, preparing to face my enemy. It’s just funny to me that even though I was given another chance at life, I would find myself in the same predicament.”
“You don’t know that they’ll kill you.”
“I would almost be offended if they didn’t.” Scarlet looked over to Olivia who had her head cast down towards the floor. Remi didn’t miss a beat. Was Scarlet trying to make Olivia her enemy? Though she was marked for death—once again—she was on the receiving end of her friend’s envy. It was a curse, but it was also a compliment. The mark said that she was important enough to be put onto a secret elite list. Olivia was simply another statistic.
“Who says it has to be Scarlet?” Eckard spoke up, but no one was eager to agree with him. “Scarlet’s a valuable ally to Paragon. Shouldn’t one of you take her place?”
“And who would that be?” Kace snapped. “Obviously it wouldn’t be Remi.”
Remi stared directly into Olivia’s eyes, waiting for her rebuttal, but she kept silent, instead keeping her gaze solely on Kace.
“It is an option,” she said finally. Scarlet shook her head no.
“I’m the one that killed him,” she said. “So it has to be me. Besides, there’s a better chance of me escaping. If I can break free, that’s not on Surmount. It would speak volumes to Cimmerian’s lack of security.”
“And what am I to do?” Eckard asked in exasperation.
“You’re to complete the mission,” Scarlet replied. “Get them to Paragon.”
“But I can’t do this without you.”
“Stop being a wuss. You already made it clear across Terra once. You can do it again.”
“I guess.”
“No one feels sorry for me,” she muttered. “I also want to do this. There’s someone I’ve been looking for…after I died I thought I would find my brother in Paradise, but I was wrong. So maybe he’s in Cimmerian. I have to find him…and make things right. My last words to him weren’t that pleasant.” She turned to Remi. “Don’t let anyone tell you that you’re not strong. All that stuff I pulled earlier was to see how you would respond, and I still don’t know what to think, but I’ll let you in on a little secret that’s gotten me pretty far…don’t listen to anything people say about you. You know who you are. Just believe in that.
“Oh yeah, and one more thing…if you happen to run into someone named Catherine, please give her my thanks. She has curls in her hair, freckles on her cheeks…you’ll fall in love with her instantly, trust me.”
“Is she supposed to help us?” Eckard asked.
“I have no clue what she’s doing right now. But she’s definitely on Terra. Probably planning for the apocalypse.”
“Is there anything else?”
“Nah,” she said. “Just don’t cry for me. I’m not worth the tears.”
The door opened and Redder stepped back inside. “So?” he asked. “Have we reached a consensus?”
“It’s going to be me,” Scarlet declared. Redder nodded and rested his hands on his belly.
“It’s only fitting that the culprit pay for the crime.”
“I agree.”
“Then all of you come with me. When we reach the intersection, Miss Scarlet, you’ll be going to the right with me. The rest of you continue on to the left. You’re free to go.”
“Don’t worry,” Scarlet said
to them as they proceeded on. “Cimmerian will try to get me to defect first. I’ll have ample time to escape. And Eckard, since Remi is marked, the longer you can keep her alive, the more you’ll be able to find out about Cimmerian’s future plans and possibly other marks that may be out there.”
“I’ll be observant,” he promised as they reached the intersection in the hallway.
“Farewell,” Scarlet said with a nod. “I’m not too good with good-byes.” She followed Redder to the right as Eckard gave off a heavy sigh.
“This isn’t good,” he muttered but Olivia wasn’t convinced.
“We’ll be fine,” she said. They continued walking down the hall until they eventually reached the exit. A guard was there to make sure they left, but otherwise, there was no one around. Remi started coughing the moment they went outside but she held up a hand to indicate that everything was okay. Kace patted her back and led her forward while Olivia hung back with Eckard.
“I hope she’s worth it,” Olivia said. “And that you’re right about her.”
“She’s worth it. Again, the fact that she released an eidolon in this atmosphere is very impressive.”
“Are you sure that’s an eidolon?”
“Of course it is. It looks like one.”
“But you don’t actually know.”
“Well, not 100% but I don’t know what else it could be.”
“Whatever you say.” Olivia picked up the pace as Eckard stood momentarily in the background, contemplating her words. A little doubt was all Olivia needed.