The gathering of humanity, subhumanity and abhumanity began to shuffle and move, excitement rippling through it. Radimir caught snippets of conversation: excited talk of the glories to come; discussion on exactly how dangerous the gangs that patrolled the Smog Deeps were, and indeed whether they could be recruited; a plan being hatched by Svet’s three brothers to steal a food transport so he could be moved down through the block without being noticed, at least until they were deep enough that the watchmen and proctors would no longer be present to trouble him.

Everything seemed to be going well. Limited though their understanding was, the Children might just serve his purpose, and it even sounded like he might not need to come up with every single detail of the plan himself–

Something slammed into his ribs, a narrow impact barely turned aside by the concealed body armour he wore. He staggered sideways, turning to face his attacker and clawing at his belt for his powerblade, already reaching out to find the closest area of darkness in case he needed to retreat…

Della.

Knife in hand, eyes red from sobbing, her previously hidden face now revealed by the hood she’d just thrown back. She lunged at him again, screaming her dead sister’s name. The one who’d died in her own bar, her head blown apart by autopistol shots that he’d fired.

Radimir raised his left hand to catch her clumsily descending knife hand by the wrist, drew his right arm back to plunge his own blade into her chest and–

She caught fire.

There was no starting point to the flame; it didn’t suddenly catch, or start licking over her. One moment she wasn’t on fire, and the next moment she was. Blue-white flames erupted all across her body and robes, turning her from a sobbing avatar of vengeance into a staggering, screaming human torch that reeked of burning hair and cooking fat. Radimir scrambled aside as Della’s movement carried her forwards, flailing, until she collided with a generator stack and bounced off it. She stumbled a few more steps, beating uselessly at herself, then fell forwards onto what had once been her face and lay still while her body continued to burn and cook.

‘Would anyone else like to raise an objection?’

Evelyn Darke stepped into view, her right fist clenched and a shimmering heat haze rising from around it. There was a mass shaking of heads and muttered negatives as her dark eyes raked slowly across the stunned crowd.