Pause.
“At least, nothing I’ve found suggests—”
We turn the final corner and the base of the Spire comes into view. Ygdris breaks off, hissing through his teeth.
“This is it.”
He directs the kayak towards a building with a good outlook across to the Spire. I gnaw on the inside of my cheek. Ygdris went over the plan as we made our way through the flooded streets, but now that we’re here, the sheer presence of the Spire up close is making my thoughts blank.
It dwarfs the old Parliament Buildings at its base. The human buildings are half-drowned by the rising sea, but the Spire rises up into the sky like a giant black spear.
I drag my eyes away from it. First… first we need to find a base. Somewhere Ygdris can keep watch while I try to break into the most heavily armoured building in the entire country.
Ygdris chooses a building that looks like it’s about to tumble down. Its roof is partially fallen in and one wall is leaning perilously outward; one good shake or storm would make it crumble like a sandcastle. Like so many of the central business district buildings, it has a veranda out the front that once would have shielded passers-by from the sun and now would make a passable footpath, if it wasn’t hanging on by a single strut.
Ygdris tests it under his weight and then pulls me up to join him.
“Hey—”
“Go over the plan,” he says in a low voice. Trying to ignore the way my whole body wants to lean into the grip he has on my arm, I do as he says. Step by step.
Get in through a hidden entrance, which hasn’t been used since the sea rose over it. Make my way to the holding cells. Find Ygdris’ “treasure”.
The more times I used that word, the less comfortable I am with it. Maybe because each time I say it, Ygdris barely represses a groan.
“And then make my way back,” I finish. “Simple enough.”
Ygdris hisses through his teeth. “That’s all you have to say? Simple? If anyone sees you in there, you’ll be shot on sight.”
I pull my arm out of his grip. “Getting shot isn’t exactly complicated. I’m sure even I could manage it.” I’m facing the Spire, and my shoulders tense as Ygdris glares at me. It shouldn’t feel as good as it does. Broken. “Don’t worry. We’re not due another patrol until next week. If the Spire’s abandoned like you say, then I’ll be fine. If not…”
Ygdris grabs me and spins me around so quickly I barely have time to close my eyes. My skin sings under his gaze… and then cools.
I crack my eyes open one by one. He’s not looking at me. His eyes are shut, and his face is tense with an emotion I can’t name.
“That’s all you have to say? Do you have no respect for your own safety?” he hisses. “You can’t tell me you don’t feel—” He breaks off, breathing heavily, and when he speaks again his voice crackles with barely-held self-control. “You haven’t asked me a single question. There’s nothing else you want to know, about this quest, about why I’m here or why I came to you?”
My stomach is icy cold. “Why bother? I’m the weakest point in this whole plan of yours. If the Protectorate find me and don’t shoot me on sight, they only need to look at me for me to tell them anything they need to know. You need to keep me ignorant. Whatever I ask, you’ll either lie, or not answer.”
“Try me.”
It’s not a command. His eyes are still closed. I don’t have to answer, but I can’t stop myself.
“What’s so important about this treasure of yours?”
Ygdris is completely still. His fingers are still locked on my arms… and he still isn’t looking at me.
“I can’t answer that.”
“Right.” I pull away, and he doesn’t stop me. “Well, I’ll just…”
“Take these.” Ygdris presses three objects into my hands. “This blade should get you past any locked doors. Headlamp. Oxygen. And comms.”
It’s all lightweight drac-tech. Even the oxygen kit hardly weighs more than an empty backpack. I slip the comm over my ear and tap it. It hums softly.
Ygdris steps back and activates his own earpiece. The noise in my ear changes and I gasp as I hear Ygdris’ breath, as close as if he was leaning over my shoulder, his lips brushing at the soft skin of my neck…
“Good, so, that’s working,” I mutter.