sit and watch everything rot. You won't help?"
Belshezar looked at the floor. "Too much risk. You shouldn't interfere. Haven't we been good to you, helped you?"
Reah stood silent in front of them for a few seconds. "There aren't many of you," she said. "You could spend days finding me if I wanted to get lost."
Rebecca's mouth dropped open, showing her bottom teeth. "What..." Her eyes narrowed, as if she had suddenly seen Reah in a clear light. "We've been here longer. We know the city better. Don't make us throw you out."
"You don't have the power to throw anyone out!" Reah spat. Belshezar reached out to take her arm but she backed away, soft dress swirling.
"Then leave by yourself," Rebecca said. "Leave us alone!"
Reah shook her head. She turned away and Belshezar began to follow. "Wait a moment," he said. "Let's talk about this -- " She ran. Before he could reach her she clambered into a bee-shaped flier and told it to take her to the city's peak.
As the flier rose in a slow spiral, Belshezar and Rebecca stood on the floor below, finally merging into the grand lily design which folded and unfolded in the cool green light.
The city's peak rose twelve hundred meters above the high plains. The air was colder and thinner so high, making it hard for her to breathe. She left the vehicle at the landing platform with orders to stay and walked through the arched buttresses which supported the city's crest. Above and below the porch surrounding the shaft were garden levels, terraced and provided with waterfalls and streams. The air smelled of flowers, but half the gardens were a riot now, untended by organic machines which lay in moldering rains. God-Does-Battle's wildlife was already finding sanctuary up here, away from the more vigilant defenses below. Birds nested in the trees or on splintered columns, and insects scampered across the pathways at her approach. A giant moth broad as her shoulders swooped by with a tiny squeak and lighted on a closed bud. She stopped to look at it, then hurried on and lost herself in the peak's central forest.
The trees had once been part of the city itself, but with the failing systems, some had germinated on their own and left generations of independent offspring. Now the forest was little different from natural woods below, but there were no large animals. As she walked, she discovered that a few houses still functioned in the middle of the trees, and she decided to stay in one for the rest of the night.
The furniture was scattered through the rooms, bent and crumbling, cloth in rotting tatters. Dust covered the floor and made her cough. The insect life was profuse. She had second thoughts -- but then she saw the console and covered screen. The bench in front of the console was solid. She sat on it and requested information. With a rustle of dust, the louvres opened and a homunculus appeared on the plate.
"Are there any facilities for cleaning this place?" she asked. The figure appeared to think the question over for a moment. "One machine replies; would you like it activated and put to work?"
"Yes. Also, I'd like fresh bedclothes and furniture manufactured."
"They will be transported from factories in the lower levels."
"That's fine. Now, while I wait, I want to be connected to the city archives."
"Archives are closed. Only city managers may see -- "
"I am a city manager," Reah said, tensing with her lie.
The homunculus wavered for a moment, then became solid again. "City manager -- status, please."
"Retired. Listen, the city is in need of organization -- "
"That is the status," the homunculus said. "Pardon this unit. Not all portions function as well as they should. Which archives do you wish to see?"
"Records of previous managers."
She felt a presence behind her and jumped, then screamed. A man dressed in black was walking out of the wall. He raised one hand and moved his lips silently, beckoning her to follow.
The army was arranged as Durragon had ordered. The first group
Belshezar looked at the floor. "Too much risk. You shouldn't interfere. Haven't we been good to you, helped you?"
Reah stood silent in front of them for a few seconds. "There aren't many of you," she said. "You could spend days finding me if I wanted to get lost."
Rebecca's mouth dropped open, showing her bottom teeth. "What..." Her eyes narrowed, as if she had suddenly seen Reah in a clear light. "We've been here longer. We know the city better. Don't make us throw you out."
"You don't have the power to throw anyone out!" Reah spat. Belshezar reached out to take her arm but she backed away, soft dress swirling.
"Then leave by yourself," Rebecca said. "Leave us alone!"
Reah shook her head. She turned away and Belshezar began to follow. "Wait a moment," he said. "Let's talk about this -- " She ran. Before he could reach her she clambered into a bee-shaped flier and told it to take her to the city's peak.
As the flier rose in a slow spiral, Belshezar and Rebecca stood on the floor below, finally merging into the grand lily design which folded and unfolded in the cool green light.
The city's peak rose twelve hundred meters above the high plains. The air was colder and thinner so high, making it hard for her to breathe. She left the vehicle at the landing platform with orders to stay and walked through the arched buttresses which supported the city's crest. Above and below the porch surrounding the shaft were garden levels, terraced and provided with waterfalls and streams. The air smelled of flowers, but half the gardens were a riot now, untended by organic machines which lay in moldering rains. God-Does-Battle's wildlife was already finding sanctuary up here, away from the more vigilant defenses below. Birds nested in the trees or on splintered columns, and insects scampered across the pathways at her approach. A giant moth broad as her shoulders swooped by with a tiny squeak and lighted on a closed bud. She stopped to look at it, then hurried on and lost herself in the peak's central forest.
The trees had once been part of the city itself, but with the failing systems, some had germinated on their own and left generations of independent offspring. Now the forest was little different from natural woods below, but there were no large animals. As she walked, she discovered that a few houses still functioned in the middle of the trees, and she decided to stay in one for the rest of the night.
The furniture was scattered through the rooms, bent and crumbling, cloth in rotting tatters. Dust covered the floor and made her cough. The insect life was profuse. She had second thoughts -- but then she saw the console and covered screen. The bench in front of the console was solid. She sat on it and requested information. With a rustle of dust, the louvres opened and a homunculus appeared on the plate.
"Are there any facilities for cleaning this place?" she asked. The figure appeared to think the question over for a moment. "One machine replies; would you like it activated and put to work?"
"Yes. Also, I'd like fresh bedclothes and furniture manufactured."
"They will be transported from factories in the lower levels."
"That's fine. Now, while I wait, I want to be connected to the city archives."
"Archives are closed. Only city managers may see -- "
"I am a city manager," Reah said, tensing with her lie.
The homunculus wavered for a moment, then became solid again. "City manager -- status, please."
"Retired. Listen, the city is in need of organization -- "
"That is the status," the homunculus said. "Pardon this unit. Not all portions function as well as they should. Which archives do you wish to see?"
"Records of previous managers."
She felt a presence behind her and jumped, then screamed. A man dressed in black was walking out of the wall. He raised one hand and moved his lips silently, beckoning her to follow.
The army was arranged as Durragon had ordered. The first group
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