Yvenna Mirendy sat calmly in the anteroom, waiting patiently to be called in.

She wasn’t particularly comfortable, not with the large security guard casting her wary eye on her. But then, this was a business meeting. She wasn’t expecting to be comfortable.

The door opened, and the guard’s commlink beeped. “Lady Tarsuss will see you now,” the woman said, absentmindedly brushing a stray braid back behind her ear.

The guard shadowed Yvenna until she reached her chair in Pryvani’s New Trantor office. “I’ll be right outside if you need anything, Pryvani,” she said.

“Don’t worry, Rixie,” Pryvani said oleaginously. “I’m quite sure Ms. Mirendy won’t cause me any trouble.”

“I am too,” the guard said. “I’ll still be right outside.”

The door closed, and Pryvani was alone with her mother’s former consigliore.

“So Sen. Tarsuss,” Yvenna said, calmly, “what can I do for you?”

Pryvani tented her fingers, and chuckled. “Yvenna, when you were infecting Avalon with plague, did you ever think that you’d be sitting here, across from me? Did you ever think you’d be in this position?”

Yvenna smiled tightly. “That’s an interesting assertion. I would love to see you attempt to prove it in court.”

Pryvani laughed. “Oh, Yvenna – do you really think I’m considering prosecuting you? Come now. You’re much smarter than that.”

Yvenna nodded. “As are you. Something your mother failed to reckon with.”

“Indeed,” Pryvani said. She sobered. “I know my mother viewed people as disposable. I do not, Yvenna. The actions you took killed people, plunged Avalon into civil war. And don’t smirk; the humans there are no less people than you or me.”

“Your mother didn’t think so.”

“My mother,” Pryvani said, “most assuredly did. She viewed all people as equally worthless – human, Titan, Ler, Avartle, me – and you.”

Yvenna winced at that, but didn’t deny it. She’d worked with Syon a long time. She knew the truth in what Pryvani was saying.

“Your actions caused thousands of deaths, Yvenna, and the fallout is still causing more. No, I’m not going to prosecute you. But that does not mean I am going to let you walk away from here unpunished.”

“You’re not going to kill me, Pryvani,” Yvenna said. “You don’t have the stomach for it.”

“Try me,” Pryvani said, her smile not wavering. “I’m Syon Fand’s daughter, Yvenna. Don’t think I didn’t learn a thing or two.”

Yvenna stared at Pryvani, trying to read her. The daughter wore the same mask as her mother; she was impenetrable. But Pryvani’s eyes were cold as a comet in deep space. Yvenna didn’t know if Pryvani would have her killed.

But she was not going to risk finding out.

“If you meant to kill me,” Yvenna said, “you would have done it. You wouldn’t have brought me here.”

“True,” Pryvani said. “I’m a busy woman. Yvenna, your employ with my mother is at an end, and she is in the Imperial Dungeon. She’s never getting out, not without an Imperial pardon, and…well…she’s never getting out.”

“That is almost certainly true,” Yvenna said.

“You have done a great deal of work for my mother. I want you to hand that work over to me.”

Yvenna blanched. “You…I can’t. You know I can’t. I’m her attorney. She…I have an ethical obligation…..”

Pryvani laughed out loud. “’Ethical obligation?’ Come now, Yvenna. If ethics were an issue for you, you would never have gone to work for my mother. You’re going to transfer all the work you’ve done for her to me. I know you made copies; you’re very thorough. And I mean everything. If you have a receipt for a gok’ma bar you bought on the way to a meeting with Syon, I want it.”

“There are…there are incriminating things…things you won’t want to see.”

“Like who killed my father? Yes, I know. Why do you think I want the gorram files?” Pryvani said.

“What if I refuse?” Yvenna said.

Pryvani looked at her evenly. “Yvenna, a human associate of mine recently introduced me to a motion picture from Earth. It’s a short film, less than two hours long, but it tells a rather lovely story about true love. It has a marvelous turn of phrase in it. ‘To the pain.’ Not to the death – death is over so very quickly. No, to the pain means that the loser is left broken and miserable. Rather like my mother has been. When I find your grubby fingerprints all over my father’s murder – and I will, Yvenna, you know that – do you want me to be merciful because you gave me those files? Or would you rather I slowly destroy you – your career, your reputation, your life? Destroy it by bit, until you’re begging for death?”

Yvenna swallowed hard. “And if I give you these files?”

“You’ll be paid a retainer,” Pryvani said. “One commensurate with what my mother paid you. You’ll be paid to do nothing. You’ll sit here in New Trantor, in an office I pay for, and you’ll stay out of trouble. And every so often, I may have a need for some of your contacts. When I yell jump, you will immediately ask how high.”

Yvenna raised her eyebrows. “You know, my contacts….”

“I do,” Pryvani said. “I told you – I’m Syon’s daughter, after all. But unlike her, I recognize there’s a world outside myself, and while there’s plenty of beauty in it – there’s plenty of ugly, too. It’s wise to have friends in both places.”

Yvenna nodded. “All right,” she said. “I am relying on your discretion….”

“The only reason I won’t feed you to the judicators for violating your ethics is that I might have to spend some time and money erasing my own role in the matter. But that’s enough, isn’t it?”

“It is.” Yvenna said.

“Go back to your office,” Pryvani said. “I’ll have someone pick up the files from you in three days. I’ll be in contact after that.”

Yvenna nodded, and said, “Thank you, Lady Tarsuss.”

“Don’t thank me yet,” Pryvani said. “Now get out of my office.”

Yvenna stood up, gave a slight bow, and practically bolted from the room. Rixie poked her head in a few moments later. “You rattled her good. What did you say to her?”

“Nothing much,” Pryvani said. “I just reminded her exactly who she was messing with.”

Rixie nodded. “I’m surprised you’re not going after her,” she said.

“Sometimes, it pays to leave your enemies alive,” Pryvani said. “Their gratitude can pay off eventually.”

“You’re scary sometimes,” Rixie joked, closing the door.

There was a long silence.

“I know,” Pryvani sighed.

*.*.*

Rixie jolted awake at the buzzing sound. She sat up in her bed in Pryvani’s guest room and looked around blearily before her mind was finally able to connect the sound to the action it required of her.

Rubbing her eyes, she picked the pad up and clicked it on.

“ ‘lo?” She mumbled, setting the pad down by her head and burying her face in her pillow again.

“…Rixie?” The voice on the other end sounded confused. “Are you there?”

“Yeah I’m here, Vanser.” Her voice filtered through a yawn. “Have you any idea what time it is?”

“Of course I do. I’m on the same planet you are, after all.”

“Then you should know it’s time for good little Rixies to be asleep.”

“…‘Little’?”

“Shut up.” Rixie grumbled, finally turning the screen to her face. “Just tell me why you called so I can get back to sleep.”

“Well, gee, I bring you good news and you’re being very rude to me right now.”

That got Rixie’s attention. She sat bolt upright and stared into the screen in her hand. “Good news? Why didn’t you say so?”

Vanser rolled his eyes and chuckled. “I got a call from Spaceport Authority. Apparently security got a hit on the Watchout we put up, managed to pick up an acquaintance of yours from a terminal. Seems she was in a bit of a hurry and heading off world. They have her detained and are waiting for us to come pick her up.”

Rixie’s face split into a grin. Except for news that Alex had spontaneously recovered from all of his injuries, this was perhaps the best news she could have been woken in the middle of the night for.

She was about to leap out of bed and get ready to leave when she realized something. She wasn’t nearly as excited by the news as she’d expected to be. Oh, she was glad, certainly. And relieved. But the fire that had been pushing her for weeks? That boiling hot rage that had kept her on the job night after night… It just wasn’t there anymore.

The satisfaction of personally locking the handcuffs on Vasha’s wrists and bringing her in personally, well, Rixie discovered that it just didn’t seem that important anymore.

There was only one thing that mattered to her, and it wasn’t on Grelau.

She turned back to the screen, her face a mask of serenity. “You know… on second thought Vanser… I think you can handle this on your own.”

To say that Vanser Nix looked shocked was a bit of an understatement. “Are you still asleep Rixie? You heard what I said, right?”

“I did.” Rixie chuckled. “And I’m ecstatic to hear that slag was caught before she could jump the atmosphere… But I don’t need to be there for the takedown. I trust you to handle that. There’s… well, there’s somewhere else I need to be more.”

Vanser smiled and nodded his head, understanding. “I see. Well, okay, if you’re sure about that. I guess I can take care of it myself. I’ll talk to you later Rixie.”

“Yeah. Let me know how it goes.” Rixie responded, before closing the connection.

She sat on the bed in contemplative silence. She briefly considered going back to sleep but rejected that idea almost as soon as she’d had it. She had far too much to do.

She reached for her pad and again opened the communication program. There were a few arrangements she had to make.

“NTS Ticket office, how may I help you?”

Rixie suppressed a yawn and smiled at the perky young woman on the other end of the line.

“Yes, I need to book passage on a flight…”

*.*.*

“All right darling, give Alex and everybody else my love. Hopefully Zhan and I will be able to return shortly. I just have some more loose ends to tie up here.”

Rixie’s image on Pryvani’s data pad smiled. “Good. Hopefully I’ll have good news to give you when you do. Take care, Pryvani.”

“You as well, dear.” Pryvani smiled and closed the comm channel.

Pryvani sipped on a cup of tea as she sat at her desk. After a moment, she tuned her datapad into the local newsfeed, which projected into the air in front of her as a hologram.

“…On today’s broadcast: Is harvesting Royalberries really as difficult as we’ve been led to believe? Or is there a conspiracy among growers to keep the prices artificially high? Our field reporter Keyne Bloschmin takes a trip to Yatsuna Orchards, the leading Royalberry producers to get the inside story, later on in our broadcast.

“But first, our main headline: Grelauan high society was rocked by scandal today as two of the colony’s leading lights; hotel heiress Vasha Zakrov and entertainment mogul Syon Fand were both placed under arrest.” The image cut to side by side shots of both Vasha Zakrov and Syon Fand being taken away in handcuffs. “Yesterday afternoon, officers from the Imperator corps burst into the middle of the courtroom, interrupting the ongoing litigation between Fand and daughter Pryvani Tarsuss.

“The imperators, led by Legatus-Imperator Vanser Nix, took Fand into custody. As if that wasn’t shocking enough, earlier this morning spaceport security were told to detain Vasha Zakrov as she attempted to flee the planet. As of yet, there is little information that has been outright confirmed, but sources are speculating that one or both of them may be facing charges as severe as high treason. We will have more on this story as it develops.

“Shocking.” The news anchor commented to her desk-side partner. “Just shocking. We’ll be sure to keep an eye on this ongoing investigation. In the meantime, what’s new in the world of Sports Grej?”

The image changed to a young titan with a camera ready face and a big grin. “Well Madi, the tol-bot circuit was thrown into upheaval today when reigning champion Iron Maiden announced that she would be invoking the little-used Right of Parlay.”

Pryvani almost spit her tea out in surprise. She sat bolt upright and hastily turned the volume up higher. “Parlay is, of course, the reigning champions’ ability to delay the start of the Grand Tribute for up to several weeks at a time. This is frankly, a huge upset for basically everybody who was involved in the tournament, which had been scheduled to start in just a couple of weeks’ time. While it is well within the Iron Maiden’s rights as champion to issue a stay of commencement, she is the first one to do so in almost five decades.

“The Iron Maiden’s statement was only issued a few hours ago, and already the tol-bot community is wild with speculation, as well as debate on what effects the reigning champion being forced to play in the opening round will have on the final standings.

“We attempted to reach the Maiden for a statement, perhaps an explanation for why she was postponing the start of the tournament, but predictably we were unable to reach her. A spokesperson for Bellona, Iron Maiden’s principle sponsor, told us that they had no idea she’d be pulling such a move.

“You’re bloody right I didn’t!” Pryvani yelled at the screen.

*.*.*

Alex stood in the center of the pool of light in the otherwise darkened room. Alex was glad for the darkness, though. It hid from him how vast the room around him was.

Nick stood behind him.

“Are you ready?” He asked Alex, his voice calm and steady.

Alex took a deep breath. “Yeah.”

“Okay.” His voice raised and he seemed to address the room around him. “Rixie, we’re ready.”

The light shifted and the circle of light widened. As they watched, a form emerged from the shadow. Rixie stepped into the light. She was human sized, but had kept her holographic avatar proportionate to her real self. She was taller than Alex, but not overwhelmingly so.

“Hello Alex.” Rixie smiled gently and continued to walk towards him, looking almost like she was approaching a trapped animal.

“Hi Rixie.” Alex smiled nervously. “I’m glad you’re back.”

“How do you feel Alex?” Nick said calmly, laying a hand on Alex’s shoulder.

“Fine…” Alex whispered as Rixie drew near.

“I want you to rate your anxiety level on a scale from one to ten, alright? One being good, ten being unbearable.”

“Two.” Alex sighed as Rixie drew closer. Without giving himself a chance to think about it, he drew her in close and wrapped his arms around her. More than anything, he was overjoyed to see her in the flesh… so to speak. He almost couldn’t believe they were back on the same planet.

“Good.” Nick nodded. “Rixie, why don’t you take it to the next level?”

The Titan nodded and she seemed to blur, like a reflection in a pond after a pebble has been cast into it. When the hologram resolved again, she was about seven or eight feet tall. Alex didn’t even reach her shoulders anymore. His mouth went dry and he felt his heart rate quicken slightly.

“Alex?” Nick prompted. “How are you doing?”

“Three…” Alex responded hoarsely. “Maybe… maybe three and a half.”

“You’re doing fantastic Alex.” Rixie said warmly. Her hand twitched as she resisted the urge to wrap her arm around him. “Are you ready for the next part?”

Alex took another deep breath but nodded.

Again, Rixie’s image seemed to quiver, her body expanded outward as she grew another two feet. Alex swallowed again and felt his body begin to tremble slightly. But he gritted his teeth and forced himself to look up at her.

It’s Rixie, you idiot. He admonished himself. She’d never hurt you. Snap out of it.

“Well?” Nick asked.

“Still three.” Alex ground out between clenched teeth.

“Alex…”

“All right, maybe four or five, but don’t worry. I’m fine.”

Nick and Rixie exchanged concerned looks, which was no easy feat considering Nick had to crane his neck up to look her in the eyes.

“Alex…” Rixie began gently. “Maybe this is enough for now… maybe we should stop… Just for a little bit…”

“No!” Alex snapped. “I’m fine! I can do this. Keep going!”

Rixie bit her lip. Every instinct told her to call an end to this…

“Do it, Rixie.” Nick told her.

The Titan hesitated for just a second, before letting out a sigh of resignation. “Okay…”

Once again, Rixie’s image shifted and she grew again. Alex found himself even with her calves. His heart was now pounding in his chest, but he clenched his fists determinedly and raised his chin to look at her. His gaze slid past her waist, over her abdomen… and he found he was unable to see her face past her bust.

She loomed over him and he suddenly realized she was standing in her shadow. Her massive form blocked out the light completely.

Her leg twitched and Alex jumped back in surprise, falling onto his back with a startled cry.

“Alex?!” Nick rushed to pick him up, but it was too late… Alex was already curled into a protective ball, hands behind his head and his eyes clenched shut. No words were coming from his mouth, but his breath was coming in short panicked gasps.

“Damn it.” Rixie swore under her breath and her avatar collapsed into itself until she was barely five feet tall. The now-tiny woman rushed over to him and knelt by his side, placing a comforting hand on his shoulder.

“Alex… Alex it’s okay, look… I’m not big anymore. Nobody is going to harm you.”

Nick was frantically reprogramming the holosuite. In a moment the pool of light had vanished and the three of them found themselves in Alex’s bar.

Rixie gently helped him back to his feet. His breathing was returning to normal and he was regaining control over himself. She carefully led him over to a chair and helped him into it, before squatting down next to him.

“I’m sorry.” He muttered miserably. “I’m so sorry.”

Rixie blinked back tears and pulled him in close, cradling his head on her shoulder. “Nonsense.” She whispered. “You did fine.”

“I’m sorry, Alex.” Nick sighed. “I shouldn’t have kept going. Rixie was right, we should have stopped sooner.”

“No.” Alex pulled away from Rixie and sat up. “I told you to go on, it’s my fault. Besides, I’m never going to get over this if I pull back every time I get a little nervous. It’s fine. I’ll be okay.”

Nick laid a hand on his shoulder. “This is going to take time, Alex. You’re not going to be able to just bull your way through it. It has to be done slowly. But don’t worry, we have plenty of time.”

“I’m not going anywhere, Alex.” Rixie told him, rubbing her hand on his forearm. “Getting you healthy is my top priority.”

Alex nodded. “Thank you.”

*.*.*.*

Pryvani watched as the young secretary scrolled through the data pad in her hand with a look of concentration on her face.

“Well, Senator Tarsuss.” She said, finally looking up. “It appears all the paperwork is in order. If you’ll just follow me, she’s right through here.”

“Thank you.” Pryvani said politely, as she fell into step behind the other woman.

She was led down a series of well-lit and brightly painted corridors, until finally arriving at a small metal door, which slid open after scanning an access pass the woman wore around her neck.

She stepped inside and Pryvani followed after. They walked in to see a cheerful looking middle-aged woman reading a picture story off of a datapad. The illustrations of the story were being projected into the air as holograms, much to the delight of her sole audience member; a five year old girl with dark hair and large inquisitive brown eyes.

Pryvani felt her stomach twist. This was the first time she had ever actually seen her sister. She’d seen pictures, of course, but that was not quite the same as a face to face meeting. Pryvani suddenly felt nervous. While she was certain this was the right thing to do for her sister… What if they didn’t get along? What if Thyllia was more like Syon than Pryvani realized?

Pryvani swallowed the nervous lump in her throat. She would just have to deal with those problems, if they existed, as they came. She refused to abandon her sister.

They had good timing though, because they walked in just as the worker was finishing her story. Pryvani’s escort cleared her throat softly, which caused the lady reading the story to look up. She smiled brightly at Pryvani, who could now see the nametag pinned to her shirt that read “Leitana Dal.”

“Oh, Thyllia, There’s someone here who wants to meet you.” Leitana said cheerfully

The young girl looked up and those startling eyes met Pryvani’s own. The sisters scrutinized each other for a moment, each sizing the other up the way only a daughter of Syon Fand could.

Leitana rose to her feet and, grasping Thyllia’s hand, led her over to where Pryvani stood waiting.

“Thyllia, this is your sister, Pryvani. She’s going to be taking care of you from now on.”

At first, Thyllia didn’t say anything, just watched as Pryvani knelt down to her level.

“Hello Thyllia.” Pryvani made sure to inject as much warmth into her voice as she could. “My name’s Pryvani, how would you like to come live with me?”

There was a brief moment where no one moved, Pryvani’s stomach tightened again.

Suddenly, Thyllia opened her arms. Pryvani did likewise and allowed the girl to step into her embrace. At first, it was stiff, awkward, and Pryvani got the distinct impression she was being given a test. Then, without warning, Thyllia seemed to melt. The little girl pulled herself in tighter against her sister and buried her face into Pryvani’s shoulder.

The two of them stayed like that for quite a while. Pryvani was dimly aware of the flash of a photo being taken, but she didn’t register it beyond that.

Finally, Thyllia pulled away and Pryvani allowed her to step back. She was shocked to see tears running down the little girl’s cheeks.

“Thyllia, what’s the matter?” Pryvani asked, only now becoming aware of the moisture on her own face.

Thyllia shook her head, frustrated at being unable to express herself properly.

“Do you want to come live with me, then?”

Thyllia nodded and practically threw herself at Pryvani again, who only barely reacted in time to catch her. Pryvani, for her part, decided she wasn’t quite ready to let her sister go. Instead, she stood and lifted her up into her arms, cradling the girl gently against her shoulder.

Both sisters felt as if a hole neither of them knew had existed had suddenly been filled.

“Good.” Pryvani said, smiling through her tears. “Let’s go home then.”

Pryvani wasn’t sure what was going to happen next, and she was under no illusion that this arrangement was always going to be easy, or that the two of them would always get along like they were at that moment, but whatever else happened to them, this felt right.