‘Now, Andrea,’ Sweet said, smiling and looking into her eyes, ‘I want you to tell me who Cygnus really is.’ He reached out, into her mind, seeking the answer. Knowing who Cygnus was would be incredibly valuable to the Princes and…
Jason Sweet found himself standing in the dark, a bleak landscape under louring clouds. The place seemed to be composed of obsidian rock that had cracked long ago, leaving a weathered, infinitely deep chasm. Across that chasm, he could see Andrea, or it looked like Andrea, but she was dressed as Twilight and, even at this distance, she seemed to be smiling at him. Why was she smiling?
And then he felt something. Something was behind him, coming closer. He did not want to turn around and find out what it was because he had a horrible feeling that he did not want to know, but it was coming ever closer. Looking down, he saw the first trails of shadow wrapping around his ankles and rising up his legs, and then it was all around him and he was definitely not alone.
~~~
Andrea blinked and shook her head as Sweet’s control broke. She pulled her hand free and he just sat there, eyes wide and mouth hanging open. He was stunned, but she wanted more than that. She pulled the shadows up around them, thickening them to the point that no one else could see into the booth.
‘What… What was that?’ Sweet said as his senses came back to him. ‘Why’s it still dark? Who’s there?’
‘I am,’ Andrea replied and he flinched. ‘I’ve got a few forceful suggestions for you, Mister Sweet. If you ever pull that mind-control shit on me again, I’ll pull your tongue. This town doesn’t need people like you making things worse. I suggest you find business in another city. Otherwise…’ And she let the fear hit him again.
Technically, what he had been hit with inside her head was worse, but a second dose of the same kind of horror so soon after apparently had quite the effect. Sweet shuddered once, then his eyes rolled back and he slumped over the table.
Andrea let the shadows roll back from around them and then eased herself out of the booth. Three other women, all looking a little confused, were getting up to leave at the same time, which was interesting. Andrea gave Jason Sweet one more look and then headed for the door. She really needed Jacob to chase the memories of that away, but she had a feeling that Sweet would be leaving town shortly.
San Francisco, CA.
Mink walked into the Stars’ HQ feeling a little unsure. Only Elaine and Lament were in the big room, standing beside the city model, which just made things weirder. ‘Backroom said you needed to see me, Lament,’ Mink said.
‘I do,’ Lament replied. She was looking nervous and a little angry. Her posture was all wrong, hunched and very not-Lament. ‘Simon’s dead.’
‘Your brother? He was alive when I left him.’
‘Someone got into the hospital wing at the prison and injected him with strychnine. He… Um…’
‘That isn’t a nice way to die. I’m sorry.’
‘He was a pain in my ass and he tried to kill me, but he was still my brother. I’ve thought about it and there’s really only one suspect.’
‘Diamond. She was worried he might spill something he’d heard.’
‘Yes,’ Lament said. ‘I think she persuaded him to go after me in the first place. He’s never gone so far before. I want her behind bars, preferably for good, and…’ She took a deep breath. ‘I need your help.’
‘You do?’
‘The Stars don’t do what you do. Bony and Fuego are on the streets, but they take on street-level crime. We handle bank robberies, hostage situations, and emergencies fairly well. Elaine does her best at the detective side of things and she’s really good with forensics, but we don’t do much investigation. You’re the detective and you know organised crime. I want Diamond. I really want Diamond nailed, but you’re the one most likely to get to her and I need your help.’
Mink raised an eyebrow. This was really weird. ‘Do I have to come to meetings and stand around your table feeling stupid?’
‘If you want, you can just call when you’re ready and tell us where to hit.’
‘Huh. I think the Stars are likely to be more useful than that. Okay. I’m going to go after her anyway and I could probably use a little help. We have a deal.’
Lament actually looked like she was going to cry in relief. She took a step forward. ‘Oh, thank you,’ she began.
Mink raised a finger. ‘Just… No hugging. In this outfit, it’s just a little more intimate than I’d prefer.’
‘And if you can’t resist,’ Elaine said, ‘could you wait until I’ve got a camera ready? I think Lament and Mink hugging is one of the prophesied signs of the End Times. It should be recorded for posterity and, you know, blackmail.’
Lament pursed her lips and looked between them. Her cheeks were reddening. ‘I’ll resist. You know, I wish I could pull off looking like a pole dancer while fighting crime.’
‘Oh… That’s more like the Lament we know and love.’
Mink smirked at her long-time rival. ‘A push-up bra and a bit of a redesign, you too could be stripperific. I know a good designer in New Millennium City…’
New Millennium City, MD, 4th January.
Brightstar, famous for her composure and poise, less well known for her temper, was looking nervous as she sat on one of the sofas looking up at the large TV screen which was currently displaying a rendered image of her in her current battle costume.
‘So,’ June said, stroking a finger over her tablet to rotate the image on the screen, ‘this is what we have currently. A fairly classic white leotard design with the blue star logo. Knee-length boots. You’ve already got quite a high hip there to emphasise your legs. I think it’s sexy, but not excessively so.’
‘Well,’ Brightstar said, ‘yes, but–’
‘But you wanted to try out some new looks and I said I’d come up with a few. So’ – June began tapping her tablet and the image on the screen changed – ‘here’s the other extreme.’ The new costume retained the white, and the blue star on the chest, but it was sleeveless, much higher in the hip, and with a much narrower crotch and thong back. It also had variations in the colour density, with much of the fabric being semi-transparent. Bands of solid white hid the important parts, but there was more of the Brightstar model on display, that was for sure.
‘Uh… It’s certainly sexy, but maybe that’s going a little too far.’
Without comment, June changed the image again. On the other sofa, Cygnus and Andrea sat quietly and watched the show, biting their lips to avoid giggling. June had ordered them not to giggle on pain of anatomically unlikely punishment.
‘This one is far more like your usual costume,’ June said, ‘but I’ve pushed the hip line up, narrowed the crotch a little, and it’s designed for a new fabric Fullerton Technologies are producing which would actually give you protection from small arms fire.’
‘That’s pretty good,’ Brightstar said, looking more enthusiastic.
‘I like it, but’ – June rotated the image – ‘that high a hip leads to a rather slim back.’ Slim was being generous: June had designed in little more than a string between the buttocks.
‘Oh! Oh… maybe not. I’m, well, not sure my behind is quite up to that much display.’
‘I assure you it is, but I actually think we could go entirely the other direction with this.’ June switched the image and now the model was clad in a full bodysuit. Essentially, she had just filled in the fabric over the legs and butt. ‘Go the full-body route, cover everything. It’s form-fitting enough that it’s still really sexy, but you’re not worrying over what’s exposed.’
Brightstar sighed. ‘Yeah, but Adam really likes my legs… Okay. You said I’d end up realising what I’ve got is a good design and… Well, you’re right. That fabric is interesting though. The bulletproof stuff. Maybe you could work that into a design matching the original one?’
June smiled. ‘I could even edge the hips up a little so Adam can admire more leg.’
Gig
gling, Brightstar nodded. ‘That would be good. Um, you know that first design you showed me? The one with barely any cloth and my boobs showing through? Could you make that one too?’
‘I thought we’d just decided–’
‘Oh, it’s not for public consumption. I thought I could wear it around my apartment. It’ll drive Adam nuts.’
June bit her lips. ‘Okay, so I should design in breakaway seams.’
‘You can do that? Uh, I mean, um… How are the designs for Viviane coming along?’
Accepting the change in subject, June tapped up a bank of images of the three designs she had to show Viviane. ‘Getting there. She has so many potential aspects to her persona that I’m coming up with options and letting her choose.’
Brightstar grinned. ‘So you don’t just go for tight T and A outfits then?’
‘No, and if you want some new options for your gown outfit, I’ll be happy to work some up. You helped buy me this system and I don’t think I’ve quite justified the money yet.’
‘Huh. Demonstrating graphically that what I’ve got is damn good makes it a good investment from my point of view, but if you want to design a new gown, I’m not going to stop you.’
‘She’ll make you look like a goddess,’ Cygnus said.
Brightstar preened a little. ‘Oh, well… Been quite a year for you three, hasn’t it? Looking forward to the new one getting into full swing?’
‘I’m hopeful,’ Andrea replied. ‘There are signs of a new organised crime group moving into the city, but that’s just about normal compared to some of the stuff we’ve had recently.’
‘Not to tempt fate,’ Cygnus added, ‘but this year could be a fairly quiet one. No riots, no arson sprees, just honest crime. That would be kind of nice.’
‘Not to tempt fate?’ Andrea asked, raising an eyebrow.
‘I had my fingers crossed.’
Epilogue
Guardian Cruiser Tinalki, Sol System Oort Cloud, 30th March, 2015.
‘This system is definitely the source of the transmission, Guardian.’
Naryan looked down at the sensor operator of the Tinalki. ‘But?’
‘The transmission has stopped, sir. We have no way of narrowing the search.’
‘I find that difficult to believe. Rho should be detectable if we begin a search of the planets in this system. He will be on one of the planets.’
‘Yes, sir, the third from the star. That’s the problem. Sensors are detecting extensive use of radio wavelength signals. Their electromagnetic signature is chaos. There is also a perplexingly high level of cosmic energy activity.’
‘Explain.’
‘The world… seems to be emitting a large amount of cosmic energy. Natural and artificial sources. Forms of modulation I’ve never seen before and the computer does not have in its database. With that kind of clutter, identifying a single guardian or his vessel is going to be… difficult at best.’
Naryan sighed. Those among the crew who had been there the longest had learned to recognise the signs: the Guardian’s temper was building. ‘Then I suggest you begin searching for a way to overcome this difficulty. Rho Ashigna’s criminal activities cannot be allowed to continue. Rogue Guardians cannot be allowed to roam the galaxy, even in backwater sections like this.’ He turned, addressing the bridge crew in general. ‘Set course for the third planet. We will examine it more closely. We will determine the nature of this cosmic energy anomaly. And we will bring Rho Ashigna, or whatever host his essence now inhabits, to the justice he so richly deserves!’
###
About the Author
I was born in the vicinity of Hadrian's Wall so perhaps a bit of history rubbed off. Ancient history obviously, and border history, right on the edge of the Empire. I always preferred the Dark Ages anyway; there’s so much more room for imagination when people aren’t writing down every last detail. So my idea of a good fantasy novel involved dirt and leather, not shining plate armour and Hollywood-medieval manners. The same applies to my sci-fi, really; I prefer gritty over shiny.
Oddly, then, one of the first fantasy novels I remember reading was The Dark Is Rising, by Susan Cooper (later made into a terrible juvenile movie). These days we would call Cooper’s series Young Adult Contemporary Fantasy and looking back on it, it influenced me a lot. It has that mix of modern day life, hidden history, and magic which failed to hit popular culture until the early days of Buffy and Anne Rice. Of course, Cooper’s characters spend their time around places I could actually visit in Cornwall, and South East England, and mid-Wales. In fact, when I went to university in Aberystwyth, it was partially because some of Cooper’s books were set a few miles to the north around Tywyn.
I got into writing through roleplaying, however, so my early work was related to the kind of roleplaying game I was interested in. I wrote science fiction when I was playing Traveller. I wrote “high fantasy” when I was playing Dungeons & Dragons. I wrote a lot of superhero fiction when I was playing City of Heroes. I still love the idea of a modern world with magic in it and I’ve been trying to write a novel based on this for a long time. As with any form of expression, practice is the key and I can look back on all the aborted attempts at books, and the more successful short stories, as steps along the path to the Thaumatology Series.
Recently I took the big step of quitting my day job and taking up full-time writing. My favourite authors are Terry Pratchett, Susan Cooper, J.D. Robb, and Kim Harrison. Kim’s Hollows books were what finally spurred me to publish something, even if the trail to here came by way of Susan, back in school, several decades ago.
For More Information
Take a look at the Witches and Ray-guns blog: http://witchesandrayguns.wordpress.com
US Author Page: http://www.amazon.com/-/e/B006J6II9O
UK Author Page: http://www.amazon.co.uk/-/e/B006J6II9O
Other Books by this Author
The Thaumatology Series
Thaumatology 101
Demon’s Moon
Legacy
Dragon’s Blood
Disturbia
Hammer of Witches
Eagle’s Shadow
Ancient
Dragonfall
The Other Side of Hell
For Whom the Wedding Bells Toll
Vengeance
Anthologies in the Thaumatology Universe
Tales from High Towers’ Study
Tales from the Dubh Linn
The Aneka Jansen Books
Steel Beneath The Skin
The Cold Steel Mind
Steel Heart
The Winter War
The Greatest Heights of Honour
The Lowest Depths of Shame
Hope
The Ultrahuman Books
Ugly
Shadows
Hunting Mink
Frostburn
Guardian – 2017/18
True Dark – 2017/18
The Unobtainium Books
Kate on a Hot Tin Roof
King Solamet’s Mines – October 2016
The Reality Hack Books
Reality Hack
The Fox Meridian Books
Fox Hunt
Inescapable
DeathWeb
Criminal Minds
Emergence – June 2016
The Ghost in the Doll – July/August 2016
The Princeps Venator Books
Hunter’s Kiss
Be My Valentine – late 2016
Table of Contents
Part One: Happy Days
Part Two: Frozen Death
Part Three: Trial and Fire
Part Four: Devil’s Due
Part Five: Promises
Part Six: The Prince of Lust
Epilogue
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