The two girls seem unremarkable: just two friends out shopping. The fact that the twenty-something white girl has purple hair might draw a few looks, but this is New York: she’s hardly alone. Her younger Japanese-American friend might seem more ordinary, but being the richest person in the world and having cured AIDS makes it hard for Noriko to go unnoticed.
<You know you don’t have to pay for me, right Kari? I could purchase the entire shop if I wanted to.>
<It’s the least I can do; I didn’t get you a present for your birthday. We didn’t celebrate them back on Myridia and it slipped my mind. What about this one?>
Kari Zel holds up a pink mini dress with an outrageously short skirt. Noriko scowls at it:
<Not on your life.>
<Oh come on, don’t be a prude. Don’t you want to look at your best for the dance?>
<I agreed to attend the prom. Not to get arrested for indecent exposure.>
<You will not wear that ugly green leather jacket at your prom and that’s final.>
<Says who?>
<Your father. I promised him you’d have a perfectly normal prom. And according to the Earth movies my duplicates have watched so far, you’re supposed to wear a nice girly dress and kiss the boy of your dreams. Or have a psychotic breakdown and kill everyone. It’s gonna be fun!>
<…>
<Hey how about this one? It’s green!> Kari says holding a significantly more modest one shoulder cocktail dress.
<That’s better> Noriko answers, grabbing the clothes and heading for the changing room: the sooner this is over, the better.
<If you need any help I can give you a hand> her friend teases her.
<Kari!!!>
<Just joking! You made abundantly clear you’re not interested in me that way and I don’t want to compromise our friendship. Although embarrassing you always gets a kick out of me.>
<I noticed.>
<If you don’t mind me asking, if you really don’t care about this prom, why go along with it?>
<My father. He was still in high school when I was born and he didn’t go to prom, so he doesn’t want me to miss mine. I blame the media for turning a stupid dance into a myth, but if it brings closure and happiness to my father I’m willing to go through anything. Even wearing a skirt.>
<Aww, that’s so sweet!>
<Say it again and you won’t need a prom to see a psychotic breakdown.>
Noriko comes out of the changing room, wearing the green dress. She’s no movie star and Kari does consider herself more attractive, but she always thought Noriko was beautiful.
<You’re smiling> she notes.
<I’m grimacing.>
<Come on Nori…is it really that hard to admit that you’re having at least a little bit of fun?>
<Yes.>
<Now you’re starting to sound like Torn…>
Eleusis, 30 light-years from Earth
Laphria has always lived following the precepts of the Holy Order of Artemis. She kept her vow of chastity, she’s never eaten anything she couldn’t kill with her own hands, and she has been genetically altered to look 14 despite being almost 30.
And now she’s one of her personal handmaidens. As Artemis sits on the throne of her mothership, caressing the deer resting on her right, Laphria is brushing her hair, white as the snow of Olympus.
Artemis is listening to Aura, the current leader of the Hunters, the largest pirate crew in the sector. Laphria has an extremely low opinion of pirates, vile creatures that steal and kill at their own pleasure, formally acknowledging Artemis as their goddess but refusing to properly worship her. But Aura is worse: she dresses like a man, doesn’t hunt her own food, and she’s a 7 feet tall giantess. Had Laphria been born taller than Artemis, the Holy Order would’ve cut her legs to teach her a lesson in humility.
<The Talos army has disrupted our supply lines, Lady Artemis; we can no longer patrol the sector.>
<Why should I care?> the goddess asks. Aura is not intimidated:
<We have evacuated 16 planets before the arrival of the Talos, saving billions of your worshipers.>
<Seems to be a lot of trouble for space pirates. You haven’t answered my question.>
<The survivors paid most handsomely for their lives. But we can’t keep this up without your help.>
<I am already fighting the Talos on my own. I’ve already told your people a thousand times to expect nothing from me, no matter how hard they pray. Am I not the most honest of the goddesses?>
<You are, Most Exalted Maiden of Heaven> Laphria recites, almost as a reflex.
<There are people out there fighting and dying in your name, Artemis. You may have enough firepower to destroy a Talos, but there’s one of you and thousands of them, if not millions. We have eyes everywhere in the sector; if we coordinate our intelligence with your power…>
<You are boring me, Aura. See this deer?> Artemis asks, gently stroking the animal’s neck <I never forced her to be loyal. I provide for her food and safety; she doesn’t ask for anything more.>
<With all due respect, Artemis, we are not animals. I have no doubt that you can ward off the Talos invasion, but unless you do something for your subjects, they will eventually rebel.>
“Is this blasphemous pirate woman threatening a goddess!?” – Laphria thinks.
<Good. An upheaval here and there keeps me on my toes. Want to start one? Be my guest.>
The last words are stressed as a clear challenge. Aura clenches her fists: she’s tempted to accept, but does she have enough ships? There are stories of Artemis bathing in the oceans of blood of her enemies. Would her men follow her into battle against a daughter of Zeus?
She’s left to her doubts, when something hits the mothership with enough force to throw everyone against the nearest wall, with the exception of Artemis who still sits on her throne.
<Finally some action. Report!> she orders.
<We’ve been hit!> one of her bridge officers replies, still too far from her console to know more. And she won’t know anything else, because before she can blink an arrow pierces her skull.
<See what I mean, Aura? I’m surrounded by idiots> Artemis comments, lowering her golden bow.
Knowing she has to do everything on her own, Artemis conjures up a hologram of the attacking vessel…and the bridge falls silent. It’s a bird, a mechanical hawk flapping its wings in space.
It’s an absurd and slightly ridiculous sight, but it’s not the bird that terrifies all the mortals who see it. They know its master.
<The Aetos. Hephaestus is here. How nice of my step-brother to get me such a nice present> Artemis says, smiling menacingly.
Stygia, 50.000 light-years from Earth
A young woman with green hair, wearing only leather and metal, is slouching on her throne of bones. She is Persephone, daughter of Demeter and Zeus, and she’s talking to the misty image of a man entirely covered by a dark cloak. A hood completely obscures his face.
<This is so fu##ing boring!!! I can’t wait to get back to the underworld > she complains.
<What’s stopping you?> the hooded man asks.
<Hephaestus. The God of Co##sucking has declared war on me. I can’t leave before I’ve cut his b##ls off, if the walking s##tcan still has them.>
<You know he’s my nephew and your cousin, right?>
<So? We kill family all the time.>
<That’s not how it works. Besides, what do you care about your cousin? You are the queen of a whole galaxy. Your mother is dead; you have no connection to the Olympus. Unless you want me to resurrect her…>
<F##k no!!! I hated the Old C##t more than anyone else!!!>
<Or I could kill everyone myself. Leave nothing but a galactic wasteland of charred bones.>
<Now you’re just trying to make me horny. Not that it isn’t working…>
<Is this a bad time?>
Persephone didn’t even see the woman coming in. It’s a mortal, one she’s never seen, wearing an elegant evening dress with a slit on the right leg. Her face is obscured by a high-tech visor.
<I’ll call you back, baby. I’ve got to murder someone.>
<I love you too.>
The hooded figure disappears; if the man noticed the intruder, he didn’t show it. Persephone adjusts her posture on the throne, a faint glimmer of green energy surrounds her body.
<Who the f##k are you supposed to be?>
<I’m the Empress of Shadows.>
<See, that means s##t to me. All I see is a mortal bi##h waiting to be disemboweled.>
<And I see a spoiled child confusing vulgarity with maturity. It’s time to teach you to behave.>
<Oh, I’m going to have fun with this one> Persephone gloats, while releasing a tendril of green energy to cut off the right arm of the Empress.
The mortal doesn’t flinch when the limb is severed. On the contrary, she smiles when it grows back.
<The f##k!?>
<Consider this a present from Hekate> the Empress says, before her body explodes in a purple fire.
Persephone feels it. It doesn’t hurt her, but she wasn’t prepared to shield herself from the powers of an elder goddess. And while she’s definitely not used to be surprised, this is just the start.
The sky is suddenly filling up with hundreds of thousands of Centurions, each one glowing with the same ancient power that Hekate commands.
<Of course you realize this means fu##ing war, Triple C##t!!!>
Yamanashi Prefecture, Japan
Leiko Tanaka takes off the visor that lets her control the body of the Empress of Shadows; it takes a while for her to adjust to her surroundings every time she breaks the connection.
<Great performance. You’re a natural> Hermes congratulates her, clapping his hands.
<I’m not sure what is the end goal here> she admits.
<Persephone is powerful, but she can’t be everywhere at once. While the powered-up Centurions distract her, she’s more vulnerable on the Hephaestus front. At some point she will have to retreat, my forces will invade her sector and greatly increase my domain.>
<Won’t Hekate want the sector to herself? It’s her power that gives the Centurions a chance.>
<She’s a pushover; I can deal with her in my sleep. The only reason she’s lasted so long in this game is that she’s an useful pawn: predictable, versatile and easily manipulated.>
<Like me?>
<Don’t cut yourself short, Leiko. You are a most extraordinary woman and a key ally.>
<You’re lying> she accuses, hoping to provoke a reaction. It works: Hermes laughs genuinely.
<But of course I am! I’m the god of liars and thieves. The question is, what am I lying about?>
<You don’t need the Empire of Shadows. You have access to higher technology than my own; in fact, the Centurions are based on the genome of the Many. A genome that you created.>
<I’m impressed by the fact that you figured it out, but please, go on.>
<If you only wanted plausible deniability for an attack on Hekate, you could’ve manipulated anyone else to help you. In fact, since you are the only way the Empire is able to strike any target outside this planet, choosing us makes you more likely to be implicated. My only other advantage is the Core, which you have entirely dismissed. Your actions don’t make any sense.>
<Would you believe I am in love with you and I want to give you the galaxy as a wedding present?>
<No.>
<Oh well, it was worth a try. True, I could’ve chosen anyone else to help me, but you forget that you do have another significant advantage over any other mortal: you are the mother of Noriko Null.>
<I don’t understand.>
<I think you do. Thanks to your genes, you are the only other person in the galaxy that can access both the Nexus and the Heart of the Universe. And we will need both to kill Zeus.>
Discussion ¬