Aeon Legion: Labyrinth (9 page)

The gatekeeper regarded the
gold and then the Emperor with a flat look. He sighed. “You don't
get it do you?”

Emperor Seres frowned. “I am
bribing you to do your job.”

The gatekeeper scowled. “My
job is to keep people like you out. Besides, no amount of gold or any
other treasure is worth a shieldwatch.”

Alya rubbed her forehead as
the exchange continued to go nowhere. “I always get in the
shortest, but slowest line. Now how am I going to get through without
too many questions being asked? A mask? No. They would check under
it. Cut my hair? No. That didn't work last time.”

Several silver haired soldiers
passed. Unlike Alya, their uniforms were a dark gray color with a
crescent moon patch on their upper arms. All carried aeon edges.

Alya snarled, gripping the
hilt of her aeon edge as the soldiers passed.

Terra tensed, but the soldiers
ignored them.

One
soldier approached the gatekeeper. “Got another delivery for Time
King Endymion.
Private collection this time,” He then touched the face of his
shieldwatch before dragging the small holographic disc to the
gatekeeper.

The gatekeeper glanced at the
holo before nodding. He then returned to reading his own hologram.
“Go ahead.”

Emperor Seres gestured to the
armed entourage. “You let them through!”

The gatekeeper sighed. “They
work for Endymion. You don't.”

One soldier stopped and stared
at Alya.

Alya kept her hand on the hilt
of her aeon edge while regarding the soldier with narrowed eyes.

The soldier then shook his
head. “No. Can't be her. She'd never wait in line.”

Another soldier looked to his
gawking comrade. “See something?”

“No,” he said, turning to
go. “Just a Silverwind lookalike.”

Once the soldiers passed, Alya
relaxed.

Terra felt her tension return.
She worried Alya may have lied to her, assuming this person was Alya.

The Emperor straightened his
garb. “I will bring my armies to this city if I am not allowed
through.”

“Now I'm scared,” the
gatekeeper said in monotone. He sighed after seeing the lengthening
line. When he saw Alya, his eyes went wide. He shot up before
standing at attention. “Centurion Silverwind! I am so sorry, I
didn't see you there!”

Seres frowned as he looked
over the line, trying to see who the gatekeeper had spotted.

Alya pinched the upper part of
her nose and sighed. “Well. I suppose it can't be helped,” she
said before motioning for Terra to follow.

“How may I assist you?”
the gatekeeper said, still saluting with a fist over his chest.

“At ease,” Alya said. “No
need to be so formal.”

“It's my honor,” the
gatekeeper said as he relaxed. “Centurion, you may go right on
through. No need to bother yourself with checking in.”

“I know, but I have a
guest,” Alya said as she gestured to Terra. “I need someone to
grant her clearance to enter the city. Also she needs a shieldwatch.”

The gatekeeper looked to Terra
and nodded. “Right away, Centurion Silverwind. Is she a new squi–”

“Just a friend,” Alya
interrupted. She leaned in close and spoke in a hushed tone. “I
want my presence here off the record. Understand?”

The gatekeeper nodded, keeping
his own voice low. “Understood. Legendary Blade business no doubt.
You have my full discretion,” he said before turning to Terra. “Bag
please.”

She handed the gatekeeper her
bag.

The
gatekeeper froze the bag in midair. It hung there encased in a
glowing translucent sphere. “You may retrieve
it in a few hours at processing. Hand please.”

Terra held out her hand. The
gatekeeper grabbed one of her fingers and touched it to a device he
drew from his belt.

“DNA cataloged,” came a
female voice from the gatekeeper's shieldwatch. “Welcome to Saturn
City, Terra Mason.”

“Go ahead and bring her to
processing,” the gatekeeper said, smiling. “You're clear to
enter.”

“Thank you,” Terra said as
she followed Alya while trying to ignore the glares of those who had
been rejected from entering the city.

As soon as Alya walked past
the gate, the gatekeeper shouted, “That was so infinite! I got to
meet the famous Silverwind. It's not everyday you meet a Legendary
Blade!”

Alya groaned as she rubbed her
forehead.

Emperor Seres pointed to Alya.
“Oh? Why does that cur get special treatment? Is it because she has
your silver–”

The gatekeeper whirled,
grabbing the Emperor by his garb and lifting him off his feet. His
face twisted into a snarl as he spoke in a low tone. “Listen here
you worthless dustrunner. That woman, Alya Silverwind, is one of the
greatest heroines of this city. She has saved Time a hundred fold.
You owe her your life many times over and you will show her your
respect.”

Terra
gawked until Alya drew her away. She followed Alya past the gateway
and into Saturn City.
At
least I know that's the real Alya,
Terra thought.

Once they were clear of the
gate, Alya sighed. “At least I got through before a mob formed this
time.”

Terra was going to ask Alya a
question when a man came running around the corner. He wore the same
armor as Alya and stopped in front of her, out of breath. He then
looked up at her. “It's true! You are here! Silverwind the
Legendary Blade!”

Alya's gaze darted around,
looking for a quick exit.

“Please make me your
squire!” The man said while he struggled to draw himself up after
what Terra guessed was a lengthy run.

Alya pursed her lips while
still searching for a way to exit with grace.

“I have passed the Labyrinth
with good marks,” the man said with a desperate edge to his voice.
“I can secure recommendations from my instructors if needed.”

Alya gritted her teeth.
“Listen, I am sure you are re–”

“Please!” the man begged.
“I would do anything you requested! I know everyone wants to be
your squire, but I would be exceptionally dedicated.”

“You’re famous?” Terra
asked, staring at Alya with a wide gaze.

“At attention,” came a
man's voice.

The legionnaire who petitioned
Alya stood at attention as another man approached.

Alya
grimaced as she turned, but smiled when she saw the man walking
towards her. The man wore the same armor as Alya though it had a good
many more emblems and medals. He stood half
a
head taller than either Terra or Alya. While he shared Alya's tanned
skin tone and silver hair, his dark eyes contrasted with Alya's sky
blue irises. Terra noted he had a handsome face with a good smile.
His ridged stance made him appear more professional when contrasted
with Alya's graceful motions and playful demeanor.

The petitioner
gasped.“Strategos Orion. Two Legendary Blades in the same place!”

“Orion,” Alya said as she
smiled. “I am surprised to find you out. Prometheus finally let you
out of the office?”

“I wish,” Orion said as he
stood in front of her. “I'm on an errand as usual.”

Terra wondered why neither
saluted the other. It didn't seem very military to her.

Orion turned to the
petitioner. “Young man, would you do me a favor?”

“Anything for a Legendary
Blade!” the petitioner said with eagerness.

Orion smiled. “I need a team
to focus on analysis of sensory data from the Edge. They require a
few more members and I think you will work as a last minute
addition.”

“Yes sir! I won't disappoint
you!” he said, smiling before turning to Alya. “Silverwind, I
have sent you my contact information. Please consider taking me on as
a squire.”

Orion turned to Alya as the
petitioner departed. “Rather odd, Alya. Usually you escape such
petitioners.”

Alya smiled. “Thanks, Orion.
I'm grounded at the moment. I will take care of that soon enough. Why
are you here?”

“A temporal anomaly drew me
out of the office,” he said. “Did you see anything odd while out
in the Edge? I know you were returning from a personal trip.”

Alya shrugged. “Nothing
strange. Why?”

Orion held up his shieldwatch
before reading a holo projected over the glass face. “We had an
energy spike that seemed to...” he trailed off when he noticed
Terra. His smile vanished.

Terra raised an eyebrow.

“Who is that?” Orion asked
in a low tone as he faced Alya.

“Oh. Well. Um...” Alya
said, looking off to the side.

“Did you find another
squire? How did the Sybil not precog another Qadar?”

“Not so loud, Orion,” Alya
said in a soft tone. “I don't want another riot.”

Orion frowned, gesturing for
them to follow. “Come with me.”

Alya scowled, but followed and
Terra trailed behind wondering if she had done something wrong. Orion
entered a nearby building before leading them down a hallway. It
ended in a dead end with a metal archway built into a wall. The wall
then faded away, leaving the archway open. Terra stared in amazement
as they entered an empty room that, to Terra, looked like an
interrogation chamber.

“Don't start with me,
Orion,” Alya said as soon as the wall faded back.

Orion shook his head. “Good
Aion! You could have at least warned me.”

Terra poked the solid wall or
rather what she assumed was a door. It remained solid.

Alya sighed. “And you're
starting.”

Terra stood to the side. She
raised a finger. “Um. Excuse me?”

Orion crossed his arms, still
staring at Alya. “How many years has it been since Kairos? Nearly a
century?”

Terra's arm fell to her side.
“A century? You're that old?”

Alya turned her back to Orion.
“Don't talk about Kairos like she's dead.”

Orion's expression softened.
“I'm sorry, Alya. But she's been missing for over a century. You
need to accept she's gone. Regardless, you need to give me warning
when you chose another squire.”

Terra raised a hand. “Excuse
me. I have a question.”

Alya turned her side to Orion.
“If I want another squire then what business is it of yours? I
don't need your permission. Regulations allow it.”

Orion raised his arms in
frustration. “Crashing End, Alya! Last time you found a squire, a
month later we were overrun by Faceless.”

Alya faced Orion, stamping her
foot on the ground. “You talk like it's my fault the Faceless tried
to kill everyone!”

Terra sighed. “And I'll
guess I will just stand here and talk to myself.”

Orion raised a finger. “And
the one before that, we were drowning in Manticores!”

Alya shrugged. “Coincidence?”

Orion's eyes narrowed. “Name
me one squire you found that didn't precede some huge crisis.”

Alya rubbed her chin with her
left hand. “Um. Maybe Tahir?”

Orion sighed. “We were
already in the middle of the First Temporal War, remember?”

“Oh right,” Alya said as
though she had forgotten this detail. She shook her head. “Well if
the Sybil have foreseen nothing then we shouldn't worry. Don't be so
superstitious, Orion.”

Terra's gaze darted from Alya
to Orion as she waited for a point to break into the conversation.

Orion gestured to Alya. “I'm
not being superstitious, I'm being practical. If I had known you were
getting another squire, I would have put the Second Cohort on alert.”

Alya grinned. “I'll prove
you a fool. Care to make a wager?”

Orion raised an eyebrow.

Alya gestured with one hand.
“I'll bet you five hundred years that nothing happens.”

Terra tilted her head,
wondering how one gambled time.

Orion shook his head. “Oh
come on, Alya. You know that's nothing to us. We both have more years
than we know what to do with. How about this. If I'm right you'll
wear that dress I like.”

Alya smiled. “An acceptable
wager. But if I win then you'll take a week off work and we can go
somewhere nice for a while.”

Orion hesitated as though a
week off work was worth far more than five hundred years. “Fine,”
he said at last.

“Hey!” Terra shouted,
waving her arms during a brief lull in the conversation. Orion and
Alya turned their attention to her. She cleared her throat before
counting with her fingers. “Question one. How old are you both?
Question two. Who's Aion? Question three. Who's Kairos? Question
four. How do you gamble time? Question five ho–“

Orion looked at Alya. “Well.
I see you have briefed her about as well as the rest of your squires.
Have you ever considered actually explaining things to the people you
drag through the Edge?”

Alya shrugged. “That's what
the Academy is for. Besides, I only like to show them the interesting
things, like how the shieldwatch works.”

Orion rubbed his brow. “Let
me guess. You were just going to dump her at the Academy and leave?”

“So? Why does it matter?
It's their job to train squires in the basics. Besides, I hate
explaining things everyone should already know and I have no interest
spending the next few months supervising her exercise.”

“Just like you. You blow
through like a storm and leave someone else to clean up the mess.”

Terra's brow lowered. It was
just like when her parents argued. She never got a word in with them
either.

Alya glanced at Terra. “You're
being awfully quiet.”

Terra shot Alya a baleful
glare.

Alya raised an eyebrow.
“What?”

Orion looked at his
shieldwatch. “Well I'll go ahead and inform the others about the
new squire.”

“No!” Alya said, turning
to Orion. “I mean no. That's a bad idea.”

Orion paused.

Alya looked away. “I
sometimes wonder if that's what drove Kairos away. People treated her
like a savior figure.”

“But she was,” Orion said.
“She saved this city, not to mention the rest of Time. There is a
reason they call her the greatest of the Legendary Blades.”