“First, may I inquire as to whether you are carrying prototypes of the synthetic Attuned?” the xana asked.
“We’re not packing any Ball Buddies, no,” Eva replied. “Should we be?”
“They serve as ever-vigilant sentinels for the Watchers,” the xana said. “Through them, the government monitors multiple sensory outputs within a radius of several meters.”
Eva suppressed an eye roll. She knew those things were trouble. “Robot spies. Awesome.” She’d have to be sure Min and Sue got rid of theirs when she went back to the room.
“I’m not getting any readings from her,” Nara said. “She’s clean.”
Eva raised an eyebrow. “Why bother asking if you were—you wanted to see if I would lie about it?”
Nara smiled, close-lipped, but didn’t say anything.
“We are here to extend a request for you to have a discussion with certain interested parties,” the xana said. “A discussion regarding the current Garilian regime and securing potential aid for its . . . detractors.” Her hands were clasped together in front of her, the gesture almost absurdly human, perhaps meant to put Eva at ease.
Detractors. A nice way of saying “rebels” if she ever heard one. Her stomach twisted; go figure that she would help one revolution the first time she came to Garilia, only to get tagged by the other side as soon as she came back.
“I’m assuming you want to have this discussion somewhere else?” Eva asked. A glance toward the pit told her the remaining xana were almost gone, which would leave her and Vakar alone with their new companions.
“We have more secure facilities for that purpose, yes,” the xana replied. “If you are willing.”
“And if we are not?” Vakar asked. His posture had barely shifted, but Eva knew he was ready to throw elbows.
“We depart to our separate destinations,” the xana said. “Coercion is not intended, nor useful to our cause.”
Eva looked to Nara for confirmation, but Nara’s expression didn’t change. A sideways glance at Jei said his weapon was still charged, but he hadn’t moved, either.
She had to admit, she was curious. Seeing Nara and Jei here was confirmation that whatever they had been doing on Abelgard was related to Garilia somehow. Who had hired them, and for what purpose? And why did they want to drag Eva into it now?
More importantly, could they help her find Josh?
((Go?)) Eva pinged at Vakar.
((Tell Pink,)) he pinged back.
Legit. Eva couldn’t very well raise her on comms, but she shot off a message quickly explaining the situation.
“Bueno,” Eva said. “Party at your house. Sorry we’re coming empty-handed.”
“Honored guests need not bring offerings to a gathering,” the xana said, radiating calm.
And it’s not really a party, Eva thought. But so long as it wasn’t a trap, hopefully something useful would come of it.
The xana walked toward a vehicle, tail demurely wrapped around her own neck, as Nara and Jei flanked Eva and Vakar. If something went down, Eva was pretty sure she could take them. Probably.
Pink sent her a terse message that conveyed a whole host of concerns in a few words, but also cautious approval, and Eva closed it down with a sigh, leaving behind the gaping hole in the ground that had been filled with friendship and support only a few minutes earlier. It felt like a metaphor for something, but Eva was no good at metaphors, so she settled for taking a seat in the transport and calculating how many ways she might be able to overpower Nara if the shit hit the air filters.
Their secret meeting place was a nondescript building on the outskirts of Rilia, among the vertical farms, which were much taller now that Eva was right up close to them. Then again, most things were taller than her.
The building’s walls were as translucent as any in the area, until she stepped inside and realized the interior didn’t match the exterior. She backed up and looked again, and sure enough, some kind of tech was projecting an alternate image, of a group of xana cooking and resting. There was even a child playing with an Attuned, one of the yellow mouse-looking ones. Even more impressive, she could feel psychic emanations from all the people shown on the walls, as if they were actually present rather than complete fabrications.
“For every action, an equal and opposite reaction,” Eva murmured. She’d had a conversation with Vakar once, about quennian scents and evolution, and how different groups changed in light of their own physiological and cultural expectations. It wasn’t a linear process, and outside influences could take root and grow like an invasive plant or be viciously rejected by the indigenous life. Either way, it was interesting to see the process firsthand.
Two people waited for her and Vakar: a human and a xana, along with an Attuned. The xana was tinkering with a small box, his psychic emanations suggesting intense concentration as well as frustration and bitterness, even anger. Strange that he was so easily read, given how hard other xana worked to control their expressions. Maybe he had a condition like Vakar with his smells, or maybe he just wore his heart on his sleeve or whatever the xana equivalent was. His fur was on the lighter side, though not as pale as Damaal’s had been, and his stripes were an amber color that blended into his harness.
The other person was human, dark-skinned and about Vakar’s height, his head shaved close to the skin, a full beard and mustache making him look older than his barely lined forehead suggested. Then again, as Pink was fond of saying, black don’t crack; he could have been anywhere from late thirties to fifties and Eva wouldn’t have been surprised. The bags under his narrow eyes pointed to either lack of sleep or the upper end of that range, or maybe both.
He stopped what he was doing when Eva and Vakar entered, which was apparently working on Jei’s dog robot from the fight on Abelgard. Scientist, then, or engineer. How had he fallen in with these rebels, and what exactly were they up to?
“We have brought Eva Larsen and her companion,” the xana announced to the room.
“Innocente,” Eva corrected. “Captain.”
“My apologies for the misnaming,” the xana said, projecting a brief wave of contrition. “I am called Felsira.”
“Real name or code name?” Eva asked. The xana didn’t respond, and Eva shrugged.
“I am Sapri,” the other xana said. “And this is Dr. Lucien.”
The doctor stood and offered his hand to Eva, who shook it, then was surprised when he leaned in to trade cheek kisses. It had been years since she’d been around someone for whom that was typical, and it brought back a wave of nostalgia for her own childhood. Mala seemed unsurprised by the gesture, or at least she didn’t move from her position around Eva’s neck.
“A pleasure to meet you, Captain Innocente,” Dr. Lucien said. His voice was lilting, with an accent she couldn’t place, familiar as it was.
“Mucho gusto,” Eva said. “This is my partner, Vakar.”
Vakar smelled like hot cooking oil and incense, but said nothing. He still wasn’t a fan of this expedition, but she was glad he’d come. She was less glad for Mala, who was once again digging claws into her skin.
Before Eva could ask what was up, Sapri spoke. “I continue to believe this option is undesirable,” he said, his huge eyes boring into Eva’s. That explained his psychic hostility.