The diesel motor ran loud. It drowned out the rattling of the nearby chain link fence. The distant cars in the review mirror slid by noiselessly.

And still we waited.

The dry drone of the news complained of the usual terror attacks in other countries: a…

I spun around in lazy, mostly elliptical, circles. Enough time had passed--years, decades?--that I couldn't remember being caught. Orbiting her was an honor, a duty, a pleasure, a pain. It was all I knew. I kept watch because I didn't have a choice. I was…

"How do you kill an Empress?"

I steeled the muscles in my face, and let my eyes rest on the man's shoulders. If this turned into a trap, I would make sure to take him with me into the void. Leaning back, I wormed myself into the chair's thick cushions, l…

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