“His soul,” Corrie-Lyn said sharply.

“We don’t know that,” Inigo said. “Humans have never been able to fly around inside the Void before. Maybe it’ll show a living body the way.”

“I’ll ask,” Araminta-two said.

His thoughts were gifted in a fashion Edeard was unaccustomed to; the clarity he was given exceeded any he’d known before. It was hard to throw off the sensation that he was actually in Araminta-two’s body, breathing together, feeling together. And there was the shadow perception distracting him, standing in a giant room of metal and glass, watching the nebulae outside. A flock of Skylords guiding the incredible starships. That mind’s perception shimmered underneath the connection Araminta had with the Skylord leading the fleet and its awareness of the Void.

“Do I have to abandon my body to be guided to the Heart?” she asked.

“You have to be fulfilled,” the Skylord replied lovingly. “Then I will guide you. Soon, I feel. Your mind is strong; you believe you know your way. You understand yourself. You lack only surety.”

“If I have that, if I gain what I need for fulfillment, would you take me, the living me, in this ship?”

“I would do that.”

Edeard shivered as the outlandish gifting ended. It was as if a gust of winter air had squalled around the church. He gave Araminta-two a curious look. “You can longtalk across the Void?” Such strength of mind was incredible.

“Not really. That was my other body. And as for the Skylord, we are joined as you and Inigo once were.”

“I see,” he lied. My other body! He’d said it so casually. How he wished for Macsen at this time-Macsen, who would make light of such confusion with a quip and a laugh, and the world would be right again.

“So now we find out if this Edeard is fulfilled,” Oscar said. “And if he is, you fly him to the Heart.”

“It would seem that way,” Inigo agreed.

“Not yet,” Justine said. She stood up. “This is too important for maybes. We need a very clear understanding of what we’re supposed to achieve here. Follow me.” And she walked up the steps toward the church’s open entrance.

Edeard observed everyone producing puzzled looks behind the blonde girl. A few shrugs were exchanged, but they all trooped dutifully after her. Justine’s tone had been commanding.

When they’d been introduced, Edeard had been dismissive of the sultry girl, weary, even. Because of her crude clothing and wild hair, she reminded him of the real bandits who lived in the wilds beyond Rulan province. But as the afternoon wore on, he’d revised his opinion. For a start, she was one of the Commonwealth eternals. She might look as if she was barely out of her teens, but he knew she was older than anyone who’d ever lived in Makkathran. And despite her lack of clothing, she had a dignity and poise that would’ve intimidated Mistress Florrel. He also strongly suspected she was tough enough to rip Ranalee to shreds in any kind of fight, fair or otherwise.

The air inside the church was cooler than outside. Seeing the interior bare apart from the big statue of the Lady was odd, emphasizing how cut off and alone he was now. A mere day ago in his own time he’d been Mayor, and the city bent to his will. These people meant well, he knew, but he couldn’t help the resentment at the way they’d summoned him out of his true life. If it had been anyone but Inigo-but then, only Inigo could do such a thing.

Stranger than the naked church was the golden man standing in the middle, waiting for them. He was visible only because of some strangely pervasive gifting from Justine that he couldn’t quite shield himself from, yet his farsight found nothing where the man stood, not at first. “A soul,” Edeard exclaimed when he intensified his perception.

“A dream, actually. I’m Gore. Pleased to finally meet you, Waterwalker. You’re a very impressive man.”

“Gore is the one who guided us all here,” Inigo explained lightly. “By various methods. Not all of them pleasant.”

“Just making sure you don’t run out on your responsibilities, sonny.”

“My father,” Justine said proudly.

“You need to keep Aaron under,” Gore told Tomansio. “His neural reconditioning was never going to be strong enough to withstand an encounter with the Cat. I wasn’t expecting that. Goddamn Ilanthe.”

“Lennox,” Tomansio said coldly. “His name is Lennox. One of our founders. As such, very important to all Knights Guardian. What have you done to him?”

“Exactly what he asked,” Gore said. “Christ knows what kind of number the Cat worked on him, but he was a nearly total basket case when my people recovered him. We erased what we could of that old personality, but the damage had seeped down into his subconscious. That can normally be suppressed, providing it doesn’t receive too many associative triggers. But as for an out-and-out cure, forget it. I did what I could. I patched him back up and sent him out doing what he loved, what he was born to do. He runs every dirty covert mission the Conservative Faction needs to keep the good old Greater Commonwealth on the straight and narrow. I’m not his boss; I’m his partner, for Christ’s sake.”

“Dad, the Heart?”

“Yeah, right.” Gore glanced around at all of them. “It’s a simple enough plan. Like Aaron said, you go in and engage the damn thing, reason with it. It has to be made to understand it’s committing galactic genocide.”

“That’s it?” Oscar asked.

“You got anything better?”

“Well … no.”

“Then that’s it. One minor upgrade. I’m coming with you. I might have found something to persuade it.”

“What?”

“A new beginning. But we’re going to have to be quick. Fuck knows what Ilanthe’s up to in there.”

“All right, Dad. The Skylord will guide Edeard’s body, assuming he’s fulfilled.”

“That was the original idea.” Gore shot a meaningful glance at Inigo. “We do need someone we know is fulfilled.”

“I understand.”

“I’ll take the Waterwalker and Inigo in the Silverbird,” Justine said. “It’s in better shape than the Mellanie’s Redemption. I think it will launch again. If not, we can reset to a few days before I land here.”

“No,” Gore said. “Take this ship. Its fully acclimatized to the Void now, so functionality shouldn’t be a problem anymore. And we’re probably going to need some serious badass firepower if we run into Ilanthe.”

“This ship?”

Gore gave her a pitying look. “What do you think you’re standing on?”

Standing atop the sweeping steps of the Lady’s church with the others gathering around him, Edeard finally felt as if he was coming alive again. This whole time had seemed bizarre, like some kestric-fueled dream. There was nothing for him to grasp, nothing to assure him he was living. Even encountering Inigo was something he imagined might eventually befall him in the Heart, which contributed to the sense of unreality.

But now …

Raw excitement accelerated his heart, sending hot blood pounding through his body. He was smiling as he sent his farsight racing down below the streets, past the travel tunnels, winding through the strange conduits and glowing lines of energy that pervaded the structure all the way down and down-Makkathran’s mind slumbered on still, as unchanged as the buildings and canals, those giant thoughts pulsing in their slow somber beat.

The Waterwalker’s thoughts lifted rapturously as he gifted his perception to his new friends, welcoming the sheer flamboyance, the audacity of the moment. How Kristabel and Macsen would have loved this, and as for the twins … “I know what you are now,” he told the great sleeper, pouring sincerity, sheer belief into what he was saying. Sharing himself utterly. “I know why you came to this universe. And you should know, others have followed you in. We think we can end this now. You can finish what you started.”

The vast thoughts began to quicken, their wide strands of gentle musings coming together into a cohesive whole. Makkathran’s consciousness arose. “You? I remember you. I thought you had gone, along with the rest of your kind.”