3.2 Singular

2 – Singular

Hector arrived at the airlock staging area well ahead of Sass and Iris, but he wasn’t surprised; he’d been restless and left his quarters a half hour earlier than needed. While he leaned against the wall, one foot resting on a pallet jack, he watched as Gladia’s people came and went. Idly, after people-watching got boring, he took a minute to review his archetype change; he’d promised Evie he’d give her some new instructions, and he figured he might as well get it over with:

//Veilborn Duelist archetype integration complete. Archetype classification: “Singular”—pathway complexity and density exceed Elite parameters; no analogs detected in database. Level advancement in this archetype will result in superior attribute gains and open connections to abilities and boosts of exceptional potency.

Archetype Integration Report:

• Veilborn Duelist established – Level 11 maintained (188 aura potentia required for Level 12).
• Strengthened aura pathways, increasing maximum load—use caution when exploring this limit to avoid aura overload.
• Neural reflex latency reduced, increasing Speed rating from 26.5 to 28.
• Sensory signal resolution and processing pathways enhanced, increasing Perception rating from 17 to 19.5.
• Aura density increased, resulting in effective aura pool growth from 56 to 78.

Hector paused there, once again marveling at the advantages of his new archetype. He’d never, in any of his previous archetypes, had any sort of enhancement to the nature of his aura, let alone its density. Evie thought it had to do with the expanded phase pathways the archetype was developing. She thought his connection to the veil was growing stronger. Considering that aura came through rifts that were connected to the veil, he supposed it made sense.

Not that I’m complaining.

He refocused on the report:

Aura Status:

• Aura Pool: 78/78
• Aura Potentia: 1404

A corner of Hector’s mouth quirked upward as he saw his available potentia; he’d already scraped the bank Gladia had given him, adding 350 to his previous total. He kept reading:

Available Advancement Opportunities:

• Level Advance 11 -> 12. Cost: 188 aura potentia.
• Phase Pathways 3: Enhancement to existing specialized aura pathways capable of limited matter-state transition. Purchase Cost: 150 aura potentia.
• Veilborn Senses 1: Improve cognitive processing of sensory input, effectively boosting your Perception attribute. Results will vary based on individual and baseline Perception. Repeatable. Purchase Cost: 75 aura potentia.
• Shadow Step -> Ghost Leap: Enhance your ability to use aura to enter the veil and reappear elsewhere. Purchase Cost: 125 aura potentia.

End Report.//

Hector knew what he wanted to purchase—everything—but he was concerned that his aura pool, enhanced though it was, might prove too small to make much use of the improved version of Shadow Step. As it was, the ability already cost thirty-five aura, which was about half his pool. Still, he supposed he had plenty of potentia; he’d buy a few more levels, and that might expand his pool further.

Besides, maybe the enhancement will make it cheaper.

//I’m sorry I don’t have more guidance. I can see where the pathways lead, but I won’t uncover the details until we spend more potentia.//

Go ahead then. Purchase the new level and all the upgrades.

//I just need a quick confirmation. You’d like to purchase Level 12, Phase Pathways 3, Veilborn Senses 1, and the upgrade to Shadow Step. The total potentia cost will be 538.//

“Confirmed.” Hector stifled a yawn, glancing toward the lift to see if there was any sign that Sass was coming. Evie flashed another aura system window onto his AUI:

//188 potentia applied. Corpus Vivum conditioning has begun. Approximately 9 hours to complete level advancement. Disorientation, weakness, and even fleeting incapacitation may occur. Extra caloric intake is recommended.//

//Phase Pathways 3 purchased for 150 aura potentia. Initiating aura pathway propagation. This process is likely to result in coordination deficits…

Veilborn Senses 1 purchased for 75 aura potentia. Initiating aura pathway propagation. Severe headaches and vertigo are potential side effects of this process; please ensure proper hydration and avoid operating heavy machinery or engaging in combat…

Ghost Leap purchased for 125 aura potentia. Expanding and iterating on existing ability pathways. This process will likely be mild, though momentary disorientation is possible…

Integration of purchased abilities, boosts, and corpus vivum enhancements will be complete in 6 to 8 hours.//

As usual, Hector looked at the warnings as mostly ignorable. He saw them as worst-case scenarios—like medicinal side effects. As his corpus vivum grew more and more potentia-conditioned, their likelihood would continue to diminish.

Clearing his throat, he asked, “So you really think…” He trailed off as a pair of Gladia’s crew passed by, switching to subvocalizations: So you really think this archetype will be worth the cost?

//I do! There’s a reason I categorized it as Singular; the pathway complexity and density surpass your previous Elite archetypes. Recorded Singular archetypes have also proved impossible to duplicate—hence the label.//

Figures the Empire wouldn’t release the details.

//It’s not just the Empire. Individuals are reluctant to report novel archetype information. You know that.//

Hector nodded. It was true; knowledge led to advantage, and in an Empire where people fought for power, it didn’t pay to hand out advantages.

“Hector!” He turned to see Sass hurrying down the corridor, waving. She started jogging when he looked her way. “Am I late?” she asked breathlessly.

He made a show of looking toward the clock on his AUI. “I mean, my old decanus always said, ‘If you’re not early, you’re late.’”

“I am early!” she cried, and Hector would have laughed, but her skull tattoo darkened, and he knew she was truly distressed.

“Relax, I’m teasing. I was bored and restless, so I walked down here early to clear my head.” He gestured toward the elevator. “Besides, you’re not even the last one to arrive.”

“Oh, that’s right.” Sass frowned. “Lady Iris.”

Hector grinned crookedly at her disappointed tone. “Not a fan?”

“I told you how she tried to get me to spy on you!”

He nodded. “Don’t let that bother you; that’s how people at that level operate. I’ve seen worse.” He wanted to get off the subject before Iris arrived, so he asked, “Are you excited?”

Sass’s skull darkened further. “I was—I am—but I’m nervous, too.”

Hector knew exactly why she was nervous. “I told you: colors don’t matter.”

“So you say!”

“Can I ask you something?” When he just looked at her, she forged ahead. “I was chatting with some of the crew in the mess, and they said they saw what happened with Lux and that other guy…um, Flint, right?” Hector nodded. “They say they saw what you did, too.”

Hector continued to stare, his face impassive.

“So, um…some of them were saying that Lux was basically a Praetorian and that Flint was, too.” Sass frowned, and her skull, which had been lightening, darkened again. She turned her violet eyes toward the deck. Hector was about to bail her out and ask what she wanted to know, but then she hastily looked up and blurted, “Are you that strong?”

As usual, he wanted to trust Sass. He was training her, after all, so his first instinct was to be honest. Before he could catch his tongue, he said, “Once.”

Sass’s eyes widened. “Seriously?”

The cat was out of the bag, so he tried for some damage control. “That’s between us. Clear?”

She nodded. “But, like, how—”

Hector tapped the base of his skull, turning so she could see the shiny port there when he lifted his hair. “It has to do with this.”

This story originates from NovelPhoenix. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

She’d noticed his neurodeck before. It wasn’t exactly something that was easy to hide from a sparring partner, especially when he’d been teaching her chokes and submissions. She leaned close and whispered, “Your ghost chip?”

He nodded. “Let’s just say I lost a lot of potentia when I was between bodies. I’ve been working to build up my strength—the whole reason I wanted to go into that rift.”

Sass nodded. “So, like, it was a lucky thing Flint was on our side?”

Hector looked at her askance. “Luck didn’t have anything to do with it. I made sure he was there in case Lux came.”

“Oh.” She looked down again. “Right.”

Hector wasn’t a genius when it came to verbal and non-verbal cues, but she seemed upset to him. “What’s the matter?”

“Why didn’t you…tell me?”

He frowned, looking at her. Well, that’s what I get for being honest. “Because, Sass, I was focused on the damn job, and I didn’t want to give you something more to worry about.”

“What if I could have helped? I could have kept watch or used a rifle or—”

“Come on. You just told me you spoke to the crew. You didn’t hear what Lux was like?”

Sass looked away. “Fair.”

“If you’d been there, I would have just had one more thing to worry about. Anyway, that’s how things are for now. If you want to be stronger, all it takes is work.”

Sass pressed her lips into a firm line, nodding and making an affirmative noise.

Hector spotted a familiar youthful figure in a bright turquoise dress striding toward them. “Here she comes.” He moved away from the wall, waving briefly as she approached.

“Hector Valerius! I’m glad you waited for me!” Iris regarded Sass for a moment, eyes narrowed, then she smiled. “Hi, Saskia.”

Sass pursed her lips, and Hector could see she was struggling to say something polite, but she mumbled, “Lady Iris.”

“Just Iris, dear. We’re all working together here.”

Sass glanced at Hector, but he didn’t offer any guidance, so she turned back to Iris. “You can call me Sass. Didn’t I tell you that?”

Iris touched her rose-tinted lips with her pointer finger. Hector had a feeling she wanted everyone to notice her nails—glossy white with delicate pink flowers traced in gold. “Maybe you did. I’ll try to remember.” She looked at Hector. “Are we ready, or are more of your people coming along?”

He started for the airlock. “Just us.”

The crew member operating the lock pointed to a red light. “Some folks are coming through. Just a minute or two.”

Hector stuffed his hands into the pockets of his House Ventress trousers and waited. Meanwhile, Iris wasn’t done trying to get under Sass’s skin.

“I suppose you didn’t want the other members of your team seeing what you were buying, hmm, Hector?”

He glared at her. “I don’t care what they see.”

“What does she mean?” Sass asked, taking the bait.

Iris cocked an eyebrow. “You didn’t tell her?”

Hector knew what she was doing, so he tried to take some of the wind out of her sails. Hoping she might take a hint, he turned to Sass and said, “I promised you I’d help you get a good system, right? Well, we’re meeting a broker who might have some.”

Sass nodded. “Oh, right. Thank you, again…” She trailed off, scowling at Iris’s knowing expression.

“Not just good,” Iris said. “He’s trying to broker a deal for a gold-class system. We’re talking millions—”

“Iris, will you drop it?” Hector’s tone had gone flat, and he didn’t speak loudly, but the mischief faded from Iris’s eyes, and she closed her mouth with an audible click of her teeth.

“Is that right?” Sass asked, her skull an impenetrable mask as she looked at Hector.

Just then the airlock began to hiss, and the doors slid open as the light turned green. Three crew members walked out, and the one who’d spoken earlier said, “You can head in, folks.”

Inside, as the door closed and the air hissed, Iris must have decided she’d made a mistake by needling Hector and Sass. She cleared her throat and said, “Relax, Sass. Gladia’s calling in some favors, so it’s not costing all that much. Besides, Hector earned far more than a single aura system; he saved her son, her ship—probably her life.”

“Um, I just don’t feel right with so much—”

“You don’t pass up a chance for a good aura system, Sass,” Hector said. “Now, let’s drop it. This is supposed to be fun.” He glared at Iris as he spoke, and she wilted slightly.

She nodded, gesturing around the little plasteel room. “Why do we need an airlock? Isn’t the station pressurized the same as the ship or whatever?”

Hector shook his head. “Contamination protocol: best not to mix atmospheres with every random ship that pulls into port. Plus, it gives them a chance to scan us thoroughly.” As he spoke, the light turned green and the outer doors opened. “See?” he said, gesturing to the bulky, multi-lensed scanner array mounted in the corridor outside the airlock.

“I’ve never been to space before,” Sass said. “I always thought I’d be floating around.”

Iris giggled. “Not when you travel with a Ventress. Maidensong has a strong gravity generator—and so does this station.”

“Come on,” Hector growled. He was looking at his map and had started walking. Iris’s banter had gotten under his skin, and irritation made him want to move quickly—driving toward his next objective. He strode down the long docking corridor, which would open onto the main gallery of the ring-shaped station—a huge open bazaar complete with terrariums and a park. Sass and Iris were hustling to keep up, and he could hear their voices but didn’t listen. Iris could try to make peace or push Sass further; he didn’t care—Sass was a big girl.

Outside the docking corridor, he had to wade his way into the crush of humanity, using his size and considerable strength to keep from being knocked around. He slowed, looking over his shoulder to ensure Sass and Iris were with him. As people, some quite large and wearing all manner of attire and gear, brushed past the two women, Iris’s playful, teasing expression changed to momentary panic. At that moment, it occurred to Hector that he was probably responsible for her safety.

Frowning, he pushed his way closer to the station wall beside a bank of vending machines and motioned for the two to come closer. “Listen,” he said, “we’ve got to go to Spindle B, which is about half a klick through this damn zoo. You two need to stay close behind me.”

“I didn’t realize it would be so crowded,” Iris said, pushing close to avoid a large man wearing coveralls that were more stain than fabric. She wrinkled her nose, holding her sleeve to her mouth.

“Some ships don’t have showers as nice as Maidensong’s,” Hector said, chuckling.

Sass, looking left and right with wide eyes, said, “It’s kind of like one of the big tournaments in Tharsis. Come on, Iris, hold my hand. I’ll follow Hector.”

Iris looked at her, narrowing one eye, but Sass’s tattoo had faded, and her expression was open. She looked so earnest that Hector had a brief, almost violent impulse to grab her, drag her to a shuttle, and send her back to Mars.

“Okay.” Iris took Sass’s hand.

The moment passed, and Hector nodded. “Good. Let’s move.”

As he led the way through the crowds, Hector scanned the various stalls and shops they passed, mentally building a visual map of the way back to the ship’s docking collar. He wasn’t too worried about being attacked, but if some kind of trap had been set, he wanted to be ready. Projectile weapons weren’t allowed on the station, so that mitigated some of the danger, but if an angry cousin of Gladia’s had caught wind of her arrival, there was no telling what kind of danger might lurk in the many side passages.

//I’ve noted five clothing vendors on your map.//

Ah, thanks, Evie. We’ll hit one on the way out.

He glanced over his shoulder frequently to ensure he didn’t lose Sass and Iris, but otherwise, he kept up a steady pace, weaving between clusters of slow-moving spacers, technicians, merchants, and all manner of sightseeing travelers. Sojourn Station, according to Evie, was the largest market in the Martian System, more popular even than many of the markets in the old cities like Tharsis.

Apparently, there were neither taxes nor contraband laws. Beyond that, interplanetary merchants gave steep discounts to avoid having to pay to ship cargo down to the planet. People weren’t exaggerating when they said you could get anything on Sojourn Station.

It took them half an hour to reach the area where Gladia’s broker had his offices, but by then, the crowds had thinned considerably. When they broke free of the central ring and the crush of the crowds, Hector looked over his shoulder to see Sass still leading Iris by the hand; he felt most of his earlier irritation melt. Favoring the two with a smile, he slowed and said, “We’re almost there.”

“We know!” Sass said, her face flushed with excitement.

“I shared my map with her,” Iris explained.

“Oh.” Hector scratched his head. “Good idea.”

“Have you ever seen so many strange people?” Sass asked.

“Not me,” Iris replied. “My father would never allow me to come here.”

Hector squinted at her. “Aren’t you, like, forty?”

“Thirty-two!” she cried.

Sass, still holding her hand, looked stunned. “You are?”

Iris shrugged. “This is my adult height, but…” To Hector’s surprise, she blushed a little. “My father says people underestimate me—” She gestured to her face and slender frame. “—like this.”

“Oh…” Sass shrugged. “Ready?” She nudged Hector.

“Yeah, come on.” He led the way to the broker’s office—a storefront built into the station like all the others, though his door bore a simple sign painted in the window: Silver Enterprises. When he pulled the door wide, it chimed, and they stepped into a small reception area. Two plush gray couches sat in the front corner, and a woman looked up from a small reception desk. She was middle-aged and dressed in a very well-tailored business suit—navy with a white blouse.

“Hello there,” she said, putting aside a tablet and stylus. She had high-end eye implants that resembled glittering rose-colored crystals. “Are you Hector?”

He nodded, gesturing to his companions. “Iris and Sass; they’re with me.”

“Excellent. My name is Tamla; I’m Mr. Silver’s assistant; I’ll let him know you’re waiting.” She gestured to the couches. “If you’ll have a seat, I’d be happy to provide refreshments.”

“I’d appreciate some water,” Iris said. “That central market is stuffy!”

Tamla stood. “It certainly is! Too many people, I’m afraid. The consortium increases the maximum occupancy every year. I’ll get your water. Anyone else? We also have cola, tea, and coffee. If you’re hungry, I just received a delivery from Two Vole Bakery, and the butter sables are to die for!”

Hector walked over to the couch and sat. “I’m fine.”

He saw Sass looking at Iris, who smiled and nodded. “We’d both like to try the butter sables. Also, I think we’d enjoy some tea—instead of water.”

Tamla started toward the door behind her desk. “I’ll bring hot water and a selection.”

Hector looked around the room, trying to judge the value of the wooden bookcases, the thick carpeting, or the gilt-framed artwork. It wasn’t that they were particularly luxurious; it was the fact that they were in orbit, and in his day, such furnishings weren’t common in space.

“Nice lady,” Sass remarked.

“Well, Hector’s about to make her boss a lot of money.”

“Do you know much about aura systems?” Sass asked Iris.

“Just second-hand. I’ve never taken the plunge—rather save my money for rejuvenations, nice clothes, and…”

Hector tuned them out. He was glad Iris was endeavoring to earn points with Sass, but she was clever, and he knew better than to take her at face value. Iris needed him for her father’s cause, which was Gladia’s cause, and he was pretty sure she’d taken his earlier scowls to heart—maybe she really would befriend Sass, but for the moment, Hector was content to believe it was all a show for his benefit.

Tamla returned with a silver tray laden with small, flaky cookies and poured Sass and Iris their tea. Hector could see Sass was having fun, so he tried to relax, leaning back on the couch and closing his eyes. He was feeling a little drained, and he realized it might be the aura system affecting him.

“Try one!” Sass said, nudging him with her elbow.

He opened one eye and saw she was holding one of the cookies. He took it and put it into his mouth whole. It melted—like butter—and left behind a glorious, oily sweetness on his tongue when he swallowed. “Damn,” he said.

“Good, right?” Sass asked.

Hector leaned over and picked up another one. “Best thing I’ve eaten in a while.”

Just then, the inner door opened, and Tamla quickly stood as a man stepped into the reception area. He wore a black and burgundy pin-striped suit, had long, wavy red hair, and eyes that reminded Hector of a wolf…

Or a fox.

The man smiled broadly and said, “Good afternoon, folks! I’m Xan Silver, and I just finished a fruitful meeting with one of my suppliers. How would you like to sit down and look at some aura systems?”