you,” said Cassander as they walked on. “All is not lost here.”
“Perhaps it soon will be,” said Kayana. “This is a town of poets defended by paid mercenaries. How long can this last?”
“You’d be surprised,” said Cassander. “The citizens of the conurbation secretly yearn for Hellenica, even if they’re too terrified of their gods to admit it. They all want the freedom to listen to men argue like that.”
“Freedom alone cannot sustain a society,” said Kayana.
“Are you sure about that?” said Cassander. “Look there.”
Cassander pointed at the man in the white coat walking by, leading his Aurochs past them. The Aurochs was even taller than Kayana had initially thought. She looked down and saw that the added height was due to a floating pad the Aurochs was on, made weightless by a powerful electromagnet. Cassander pointed at the wheel that guided the pad; it had a full-color digital display.
“Freedom brings innovation, innovation brings technology ,” said Cassander. “Hellenica has technology and the other districts don’t. That alone will maintain these city walls and pay the mercenaries for quite some time.”
/***/
They walked up to the Acropolis and saw the city as a whole. The city wall was imperious and impenetrable with clean, sharp lines that wrapped around Hellenica completely. The wall was so high that even from the Acropolis, Kayana could barely see the city beyond. She saw enough though; there was a fire in Little Asgaard and pollution coming from Dagon’s docks. The Yōkai district’s shantytown piled upon itself and seemed like it was ready to spill over Hellenica’s walls at any minute.
But still , thought Kayana, within these walls, it is as it should be. Children still die, plagues still come, but Hellenica is as it should be.
Kayana noticed a few more young recruits coming to the Academy with their mercenary handlers. There was a shirtless boy who looked normal at first, but she noticed that his feet were cloven hooves and his legs were covered with brown fur. She saw a thick girl almost two meters in height shrug off her guard and try to enter the Acropolis by herself. She saw another young man with green, scaly skin, sharp teeth and a long snout.
They entered the Acropolis one by one. After the thick girl entered, Kayana heard some clashes and then saw the girl burst out, followed by some Spartan mercenaries. The thick girl eventually calmed down, shrugged off one more mercenary and entered the Acropolis again.
“She’s an Amazon,” whispered Cassander. “Amazons and Spartans don’t get along.”
When it was Kayana’s turn, Cassander nodded towards her to go, and they entered the Acropolis. It was enormous, dark and vacant, much as it always had been. They walked towards the far end, Spartans opened a door, and soon they were in a brightly lit interrogation room.
There was a woman sitting down at the table who had an attractive but odd face; she looked something like a cat. Behind her stood a tall, imposing man with green-shaded skin.
“You may go, Cassander,” said the cat-faced woman, “and thank you.”
Cassander smiled and then knelt down in front of Kayana. Though he was a Spartan, he had a strong kindness in his eyes that Kayana hadn’t seen before. She wasn’t certain of what he was trying to convey, but if she had to guess, she’d say that Cassander was being fatherly .
“Good luck, okay?” he said. “And stay out of the shadows.”
Cassander left the room, and the cat-faced woman nodded at the green-skinned man.
“Please remove your gloves, Ms. Marx,” said the cat-faced woman.
“I wouldn’t advise that,” said Kayana.
“We’re well aware of your powers, Ms. Marx,” said the woman, “and I assure you, ours will protect us. Remove your protective gloves.”
Kayana took off the gloves and the cat-like woman took Kayana’s hands in hers, analyzed them and then put them down.
“My name is Bastet,” she said. “As
“Perhaps it soon will be,” said Kayana. “This is a town of poets defended by paid mercenaries. How long can this last?”
“You’d be surprised,” said Cassander. “The citizens of the conurbation secretly yearn for Hellenica, even if they’re too terrified of their gods to admit it. They all want the freedom to listen to men argue like that.”
“Freedom alone cannot sustain a society,” said Kayana.
“Are you sure about that?” said Cassander. “Look there.”
Cassander pointed at the man in the white coat walking by, leading his Aurochs past them. The Aurochs was even taller than Kayana had initially thought. She looked down and saw that the added height was due to a floating pad the Aurochs was on, made weightless by a powerful electromagnet. Cassander pointed at the wheel that guided the pad; it had a full-color digital display.
“Freedom brings innovation, innovation brings technology ,” said Cassander. “Hellenica has technology and the other districts don’t. That alone will maintain these city walls and pay the mercenaries for quite some time.”
/***/
They walked up to the Acropolis and saw the city as a whole. The city wall was imperious and impenetrable with clean, sharp lines that wrapped around Hellenica completely. The wall was so high that even from the Acropolis, Kayana could barely see the city beyond. She saw enough though; there was a fire in Little Asgaard and pollution coming from Dagon’s docks. The Yōkai district’s shantytown piled upon itself and seemed like it was ready to spill over Hellenica’s walls at any minute.
But still , thought Kayana, within these walls, it is as it should be. Children still die, plagues still come, but Hellenica is as it should be.
Kayana noticed a few more young recruits coming to the Academy with their mercenary handlers. There was a shirtless boy who looked normal at first, but she noticed that his feet were cloven hooves and his legs were covered with brown fur. She saw a thick girl almost two meters in height shrug off her guard and try to enter the Acropolis by herself. She saw another young man with green, scaly skin, sharp teeth and a long snout.
They entered the Acropolis one by one. After the thick girl entered, Kayana heard some clashes and then saw the girl burst out, followed by some Spartan mercenaries. The thick girl eventually calmed down, shrugged off one more mercenary and entered the Acropolis again.
“She’s an Amazon,” whispered Cassander. “Amazons and Spartans don’t get along.”
When it was Kayana’s turn, Cassander nodded towards her to go, and they entered the Acropolis. It was enormous, dark and vacant, much as it always had been. They walked towards the far end, Spartans opened a door, and soon they were in a brightly lit interrogation room.
There was a woman sitting down at the table who had an attractive but odd face; she looked something like a cat. Behind her stood a tall, imposing man with green-shaded skin.
“You may go, Cassander,” said the cat-faced woman, “and thank you.”
Cassander smiled and then knelt down in front of Kayana. Though he was a Spartan, he had a strong kindness in his eyes that Kayana hadn’t seen before. She wasn’t certain of what he was trying to convey, but if she had to guess, she’d say that Cassander was being fatherly .
“Good luck, okay?” he said. “And stay out of the shadows.”
Cassander left the room, and the cat-faced woman nodded at the green-skinned man.
“Please remove your gloves, Ms. Marx,” said the cat-faced woman.
“I wouldn’t advise that,” said Kayana.
“We’re well aware of your powers, Ms. Marx,” said the woman, “and I assure you, ours will protect us. Remove your protective gloves.”
Kayana took off the gloves and the cat-like woman took Kayana’s hands in hers, analyzed them and then put them down.
“My name is Bastet,” she said. “As
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