I'll go home now" but you don't, do you? You keep on taking the missions, doing the jobs and the pain inside gets worse and worse until you can't separate yourself from the pain any more – the pain and you are one and the same thing.'
'Stop,' said Roz recoiling from that image. 'Please.'
FeLixi nodded. 'Yeah, right, I understand – some things you don't talk about.'
'Not here,' said Roz, 'not now. Maybe later.'
'Do you know what I like about sitting on the stairs at parties?'
'You don't have to dance?'
'You meet a better class of people,' said feLixi.
They flagged down a patrolling tray and feLixi ordered something hot and sweet that tasted vaguely of ginger and pineapple. He told Roz a joke about two drones and a ship in geostationary orbit but she didn't get the punchline. 'You had to be there,' said feLixi.
Roz laughed at that; the hot drink was clearing her head. She told him a bit of family history, making it sound a lot funnier than she remembered. FeLixi roared when she described the extreme lengths her mother went to to maintain her social position. How she'd woken the whole Krall in the middle of the night to tidy the grounds – 'because she'd heard a rumour that the Empress's ship might overfly the area'. When she talked about it this way Roz could almost believe that she had enjoyed her childhood.
They lapsed into silence, sipping their drinks and staring over the landscape. Roz liked that.
They were sitting like that when saRa!qava and Bernice emerged from the door below them. The two women were talking softly and Roz found herself unconsciously leaning forward to try to overhear. FeLixi plucked the brooch off his shipsuit and, grinning, held it up between them.
'Eavesdrop,' he said softly.
Suddenly they could hear Bernice and saRa!qava's voices, low and clear, as if they were standing half a metre away. Roz realized that the brooch was a multi-function terminal. She felt a touch of guilt about listening in but she couldn't resist it. After all, private secrets breed public crime was an adjudicator tenet, justification for a million com-taps.
SaRa!qava murmured something, too quietly even for feLixi's terminal to catch, her hand resting lightly on Bernice's arm. The other woman murmured back and gently disengaged the other's hand. It was gracefully done.
'Only hetero then?' said saRa!qava.
'So far,' said Bernice.
'Would it help if I told you I was a man six months ago?' asked saRa!qava.
Roz put her hand over the terminal cutting off Bernice's reply. 'She changed sex?' she asked.
'You mean you can't?' asked feLixi.
Roz shook her head and took her hand off the terminal.
'– only with surgery and genetic manipulation,' said Bernice.
'How inconvenient,' said saRa!qava.
'You mean you do it' – Bernice made a vague circling motion with her hands – 'sort of naturally?'
'Hey, saRa!qava,' said a voice. From saRa!qava's own terminal Roz thought. 'Dep and the barbarian are about to do something really silly.'
SaRa!qava and Bernice went back inside the building. 'Take my advice, Benny,' said saRa!qava.
'Don't ever have children.'
Roz sighed – she had a good idea of who the 'barbarian' was. 'I'd better see what's going on,'
she told feLixi. 'It's been nice talking to you.'
'I live in town,' said feLixi. 'Why don't you come up and see me some time?'
Roz arrived on the balcony just in time to see Chris manoeuvre a projectile rifle onto the railing. Dep was helping him, her eyes bright with excitement. 'He's going to shoot a line back to the villa,' Bernice told her.
Roz stared over the landscape; there was a tiny smudge of light that might, or might not, be the villa. The range was over six thousand metres. 'Can't you stop him?' Bernice asked her.
Roz looked at Chris and at Dep looking at Chris. 'Probably not,' she said.
Chris lined up the gun and squinted into the bulky sight mounted above the barrel. Roz reckoned it was an impossible shot, even for him. Chris fired, there was the
'Stop,' said Roz recoiling from that image. 'Please.'
FeLixi nodded. 'Yeah, right, I understand – some things you don't talk about.'
'Not here,' said Roz, 'not now. Maybe later.'
'Do you know what I like about sitting on the stairs at parties?'
'You don't have to dance?'
'You meet a better class of people,' said feLixi.
They flagged down a patrolling tray and feLixi ordered something hot and sweet that tasted vaguely of ginger and pineapple. He told Roz a joke about two drones and a ship in geostationary orbit but she didn't get the punchline. 'You had to be there,' said feLixi.
Roz laughed at that; the hot drink was clearing her head. She told him a bit of family history, making it sound a lot funnier than she remembered. FeLixi roared when she described the extreme lengths her mother went to to maintain her social position. How she'd woken the whole Krall in the middle of the night to tidy the grounds – 'because she'd heard a rumour that the Empress's ship might overfly the area'. When she talked about it this way Roz could almost believe that she had enjoyed her childhood.
They lapsed into silence, sipping their drinks and staring over the landscape. Roz liked that.
They were sitting like that when saRa!qava and Bernice emerged from the door below them. The two women were talking softly and Roz found herself unconsciously leaning forward to try to overhear. FeLixi plucked the brooch off his shipsuit and, grinning, held it up between them.
'Eavesdrop,' he said softly.
Suddenly they could hear Bernice and saRa!qava's voices, low and clear, as if they were standing half a metre away. Roz realized that the brooch was a multi-function terminal. She felt a touch of guilt about listening in but she couldn't resist it. After all, private secrets breed public crime was an adjudicator tenet, justification for a million com-taps.
SaRa!qava murmured something, too quietly even for feLixi's terminal to catch, her hand resting lightly on Bernice's arm. The other woman murmured back and gently disengaged the other's hand. It was gracefully done.
'Only hetero then?' said saRa!qava.
'So far,' said Bernice.
'Would it help if I told you I was a man six months ago?' asked saRa!qava.
Roz put her hand over the terminal cutting off Bernice's reply. 'She changed sex?' she asked.
'You mean you can't?' asked feLixi.
Roz shook her head and took her hand off the terminal.
'– only with surgery and genetic manipulation,' said Bernice.
'How inconvenient,' said saRa!qava.
'You mean you do it' – Bernice made a vague circling motion with her hands – 'sort of naturally?'
'Hey, saRa!qava,' said a voice. From saRa!qava's own terminal Roz thought. 'Dep and the barbarian are about to do something really silly.'
SaRa!qava and Bernice went back inside the building. 'Take my advice, Benny,' said saRa!qava.
'Don't ever have children.'
Roz sighed – she had a good idea of who the 'barbarian' was. 'I'd better see what's going on,'
she told feLixi. 'It's been nice talking to you.'
'I live in town,' said feLixi. 'Why don't you come up and see me some time?'
Roz arrived on the balcony just in time to see Chris manoeuvre a projectile rifle onto the railing. Dep was helping him, her eyes bright with excitement. 'He's going to shoot a line back to the villa,' Bernice told her.
Roz stared over the landscape; there was a tiny smudge of light that might, or might not, be the villa. The range was over six thousand metres. 'Can't you stop him?' Bernice asked her.
Roz looked at Chris and at Dep looking at Chris. 'Probably not,' she said.
Chris lined up the gun and squinted into the bulky sight mounted above the barrel. Roz reckoned it was an impossible shot, even for him. Chris fired, there was the
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