The City Among the Stars by Francis Carsac

Author:Francis Carsac
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: scifi; gothic fantasy; dark fantasy; flame tree press; science fiction; French literature; Carsac; science fiction in translation
Publisher: Flame Tree Publishing
Published: 2020-05-10T18:48:36+00:00

Chapter Four

Iolia

Tankar stood frozen in shock, not moving for a long moment. So Anaena had double-crossed him. Again. He could not doubt it; everything was so clear. Knowing that his plans were almost complete, she had lured him out of the apartment and, during dinner, had instructed the cafeteria worker to break in and steal the plans while, all along, he naïvely had been enjoying her company. Due to his nature and training, he had nothing but contempt and hatred for betrayal and, because he had believed in her empathy, he had dared to hope for even more. Disgusted, he spat on the ground.

That manipulative bitch. I’m still just a planetary parasite, less than nothing to her. She certainly had her act down pat.

A flash of hope struck him: what if she were not responsible? Why would she steal the blueprints knowing he would hand them over the following day? He would go see her a little later, and all would be revealed. He paused again. No. Everything was perfectly clear already. The reason was obvious: if he handed over the blueprints he would be a hero in the eyes of many. She would not be able to keep him isolated anymore, a pariah.

He paced, drunk with rage and shame. How could he, a lieutenant of the Stellar Guard, have allowed her to toy with him? He looked for harsh enough words to describe her – treacherous and manipulative bitch. The rules of the Guards were wise: women were to be used for pleasure and to incubate future Guards.

Now he was driven by one wish and one wish only: revenge. He would love to batter her lovely lips with his fists, smash her lying mouth, but even that was not enough. Did he want to kill her? Should he challenge her to a duel? He was not sure that he, as a man, could do that. In any event, one bullet for her 10 made for terrible odds…. He did not care about dying, but to allow her to emerge triumphant? No. He paced around his apartment. He needed to wreck the Tilsin.

For that he would need time, and he was not sure he had it. His usefulness to the Stellarans was spent. The blueprints were gone. Not quite completed, but any physicist would be able to work it out within days. Then they would be happy to get rid of him.

He instinctively reached for his belt. Empty. He had not been given his weapons back when they returned his uniform. Assassins already might be on his trail. He smiled bitterly; at least he would die in uniform as he should. However, in a world like the Tilsin there had to be a hiding places, a refuge….

A refuge? Words he had heard recently came back to him. One of the articles in the convention between the Menians and the Stellarans gave the Pilgrims the right of refuge. He had to reach their compound quickly. He looked around for something that might serve as a weapon.

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