Suddenly there was an explosion in the camp, followed by yells and screams. Danielle and Thalia went outside to see some kind of automaton army storming the camp. The enemies were not flesh and blood but built of wood, steel and stone. The majority were the size and shape of people, but there were towering golems standing two or three times the height of a person, and even stranger constructions. There was a huge, steel spider, on which a figure in robes could be seen. Other robed figures rode similarly outlandish creations, but there were only around a dozen robed figures in total, all at the rear of the enemy forces.

The pair were nonplussed for only a moment before they started loudly barking orders.

* * *

“The girl’s tracking bracelet?” Arella asked.

“Not showing up,” the deputy director, Genevieve, said. “The last location shown was in front of the cloud palace.”

“He’s hiding her with Emir Bahadir,” Arella mused. “No surprise the tracker won’t work in there. How strong is that tie?”

“Asano with Bahadir? Superficial, from what I’ve been able to gather. The connection is Rufus Remore.”

“Can Bahadir be convinced to hand her over?”

“Unlikely. My read is that Bahadir will keep showing Asano courtesy at least until Remore gets back and he can make another assessment. It might be different if we had something to offer but that’s unlikely. For a gold-ranker in this city, wanting and having are the same thing.”

Arella tilted her head, her aura senses picking something up.

“Trenslow is in the elevator. He may storm out, so go out the side door and be waiting for him when he leaves.”

Genevieve nodded, taking the second door into the conference room instead of straight back out to the hall.

* * *

Vincent arrived outside the director’s office, taking a steeling breath.

“About time, Trenslow.” Arella’s voice rang displeasure through the door. “Get in here.”

“Madam Director,” Vincent said as he entered. She was seated behind her desk.

“Where were you, Trenslow? Did you stop to wax your moustache?”

He had, in fact, done exactly that. The long, familiar process calmed him, and he felt better equipped to face the world with it in the best condition.

Arella didn’t wait for an answer, waving a piece of paper at him.

“Would you care to explain why I’m holding in my hand an order placing a prisoner into the personal custody of Jason Asano, issued by you?”

“You will find that all rules and procedures were followed, Madam Director.”

Vincent was putting on a better show of steadfastness than he thought he would manage, but he had no illusions the director didn’t see through it. Arella took a breath and sat back in her chair.

“I had thought you were my man, Vincent,” she said softly. “I thought you agreed with what I was doing.”