her eyeless sockets. Instead, she focused on Lucia’s mouth. “I don’t understand why you need—”
“This drone’s brain has limited data regarding Umbra Corps, yet it believed Umbra Corps to be powerful. Its memories suggest you were once in this organization. Do you know the capabilities of its starships?”
Whenever Ocella heard “Umbra Corps”, she instinctively flinched, waiting for the searing pain from the Umbra implant behind her right ear. Umbra Ancilia were forbidden to discuss Umbra with non-Ancilia. The implant, a data and communications link between the Umbra magisterium and its Ancilia, physically prevented discussion of the ultra-secret Corps. Libertus lacked massive fleets of warships, so it used the deadly Ancilia to infiltrate hostile regimes and end threats to Libertus before they began.
But Ocella was no longer in Umbra, which she left when she rescued Cordus six years ago. Still, the promise of pain was not easy to forget.
“I don’t know their capabilities now. Why?”
“Four Umbra ships are on an intercept course with us. They have technology that defies our scans. We would know how to disable them so we can gather more witnesses.”
Ocella turned and stared at the view wall. All she saw was Menota, one gray half bathed in sunlight and the other dark. There was no sign of ships.
Could Umbra ships fight this vessel? Not the ships that existed when she was an Ancile, but Umbra could make huge leaps within a short period of time.
“Like I said, I don’t know their capabilities anymore.”
The Lucia golem “stared” at her as if assessing her truthfulness. She then shrugged in an awkward way, as if she knew what the gesture meant, but did not know how to execute it. She looked to the wall, and Ocella followed her gaze.
The view on the wall shifted, magnified, and focused on four black Umbra ships flying toward the alien vessel in a wide formation. Ocella was surprised Umbra still patrolled the Menota system, given the ‘no landings’ treaty between Libertus and Roma had expired with the latter’s civil war. She also assumed they knew the Menota Muse archives were destroyed by the last Roman consul in a fit of Muse-fueled rage. Why were they still here?
Of course. They knew a second way line existed in the Menota system. Had they found it, or were they searching for it like Ocella and the Saturnists?
An Umbra ship suddenly disappeared in a white ball of light. When the light dissipated, the ship was gone. Two more ships were destroyed in the same fashion, one after the other. The last ship tried to turn and flee, but did not get far before it succumbed to the same fate.
Ocella stared in shock at the images. Umbra warships were the most advanced ships humanity had ever built. Their power, and secrecy behind the Umbra veil, were what had kept Libertus free for two hundred years.
Yet this vessel had destroyed them in moments with a shrug.
“This drone’s memories,” the Lucia golem continued, as if nothing had happened, “say that the Roman Consul destroyed the Menota archives. Why would he commit such a sacrilege?”
When Ocella found her voice again, she blurted, “What do you want with us?”
Lucia stared at her with those monstrously empty sockets. “You are to be witnesses.” She said it as if the statement was self-evident and needed no further explanation. She then cocked her head. “The Roman Consul’s son, Marcus Antonius Cordus, is important to you. This drone’s memories suggest this is so.”
Ocella felt the blood drain from her face. I will not give this thing Cordus. It will have to kill me.
“This drone’s memories,” Lucia continued, “suggest the boy is a host for a rival strain. ‘Muses’, it calls them. Yet it suggests Cordus can control them. Is this true?”
Ocella turned away from the Lucia golem.
“You care for your drones. Would you answer our questions if it would prevent us from hurting the drone behind
“This drone’s brain has limited data regarding Umbra Corps, yet it believed Umbra Corps to be powerful. Its memories suggest you were once in this organization. Do you know the capabilities of its starships?”
Whenever Ocella heard “Umbra Corps”, she instinctively flinched, waiting for the searing pain from the Umbra implant behind her right ear. Umbra Ancilia were forbidden to discuss Umbra with non-Ancilia. The implant, a data and communications link between the Umbra magisterium and its Ancilia, physically prevented discussion of the ultra-secret Corps. Libertus lacked massive fleets of warships, so it used the deadly Ancilia to infiltrate hostile regimes and end threats to Libertus before they began.
But Ocella was no longer in Umbra, which she left when she rescued Cordus six years ago. Still, the promise of pain was not easy to forget.
“I don’t know their capabilities now. Why?”
“Four Umbra ships are on an intercept course with us. They have technology that defies our scans. We would know how to disable them so we can gather more witnesses.”
Ocella turned and stared at the view wall. All she saw was Menota, one gray half bathed in sunlight and the other dark. There was no sign of ships.
Could Umbra ships fight this vessel? Not the ships that existed when she was an Ancile, but Umbra could make huge leaps within a short period of time.
“Like I said, I don’t know their capabilities anymore.”
The Lucia golem “stared” at her as if assessing her truthfulness. She then shrugged in an awkward way, as if she knew what the gesture meant, but did not know how to execute it. She looked to the wall, and Ocella followed her gaze.
The view on the wall shifted, magnified, and focused on four black Umbra ships flying toward the alien vessel in a wide formation. Ocella was surprised Umbra still patrolled the Menota system, given the ‘no landings’ treaty between Libertus and Roma had expired with the latter’s civil war. She also assumed they knew the Menota Muse archives were destroyed by the last Roman consul in a fit of Muse-fueled rage. Why were they still here?
Of course. They knew a second way line existed in the Menota system. Had they found it, or were they searching for it like Ocella and the Saturnists?
An Umbra ship suddenly disappeared in a white ball of light. When the light dissipated, the ship was gone. Two more ships were destroyed in the same fashion, one after the other. The last ship tried to turn and flee, but did not get far before it succumbed to the same fate.
Ocella stared in shock at the images. Umbra warships were the most advanced ships humanity had ever built. Their power, and secrecy behind the Umbra veil, were what had kept Libertus free for two hundred years.
Yet this vessel had destroyed them in moments with a shrug.
“This drone’s memories,” the Lucia golem continued, as if nothing had happened, “say that the Roman Consul destroyed the Menota archives. Why would he commit such a sacrilege?”
When Ocella found her voice again, she blurted, “What do you want with us?”
Lucia stared at her with those monstrously empty sockets. “You are to be witnesses.” She said it as if the statement was self-evident and needed no further explanation. She then cocked her head. “The Roman Consul’s son, Marcus Antonius Cordus, is important to you. This drone’s memories suggest this is so.”
Ocella felt the blood drain from her face. I will not give this thing Cordus. It will have to kill me.
“This drone’s memories,” Lucia continued, “suggest the boy is a host for a rival strain. ‘Muses’, it calls them. Yet it suggests Cordus can control them. Is this true?”
Ocella turned away from the Lucia golem.
“You care for your drones. Would you answer our questions if it would prevent us from hurting the drone behind
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