The cold felt like a slap in the face compared to the warmth of Kira's bed as she tucked her cloak more securely around her.
She never thought she'd say it, but she missed Ta Sa'Riel. It was infinitely better than this frozen ball of ice.
With a sense of resignation, Kira trudged across the hard packed snow toward where Diesel and Graydon were deep in conversation.
At her approach, Diesel glanced over in amusement. "You look miserable. I forgot how much you hate the cold."
"I don't hate it. I just prefer not to be out in it if I don't have to."
"It might help if you were dressed appropriately," he said, taking in the thin clothes she wore and the cloak that didn't look like it was doing much to ward off the cold.
"I'm fine."
The balial material her clothes were crafted from made sure of that.
"You sure?" Diesel beckoned a woman over. "At least put on gloves and a scarf."
Not wanting to argue, Kira took what was offered and slid her hands into the gloves before wrapping the scarf around her neck, making sure her ears were covered at the same time. Although her Tuann designed garments protected most of her body, her hands and ears were still vulnerable to the cold.
"Why aren't you affected?" she asked Graydon with a frown.
He gave her a superior smile. "Soul's breath."
"So, it's true." Diesel eyed him thoughtfully. "Your kind really are wizards."
Graydon's smile was enigmatic. "I'm sure it appears that way to some."
Diesel’s gaze lingered on Graydon for a second before he glanced at Kira in question. "The wizard tells me you're planning to pay your respects today. Mind if I tag along? For old time's sake?"
There was strain around his eyes that gave Kira pause before she shook it off.
"Sure. Why not?" Kira agreed with a glance in Graydon's direction. "The more the merrier."
Snow had started falling by the time Kira and the others crested the hill where the memorial waited. Diesel brought his chair to a stop, gesturing toward the collection of structures that had been erected on top of a wide flat piece of ground that was covered in stone. "There it is."
Cylindrical markers were lined up in uniform rows. Each engraved with the name and rank of the fallen.
They'd taken the nose cones from each ship lost in the battle and arranged them so the tips were pointed skyward.
"Your work?" Kira nodded at the green flame burning in the center of the memorial.
The care with which this place was treated was obvious at a glance. Despite the abundance of snow around the memorial, the monument itself and its markers were swept clean.
"A bit old fashioned, but I liked the symbolism," Diesel admitted. "Self-sustaining and self-contained. That puppy will continue burning long after I'm gone and my bones have returned to dust. Ingenious, right?"
"It is."
Movement in the tree line caught Kira's attention as Brie stopped at the edge of the forest.
Kira didn't say anything as she walked toward the monument. Diesel followed her, the low drone of his hover chair keeping them company.
Graydon stayed behind, letting her have this moment.
The sound of her footsteps changed as she stepped off the snow and onto the stone ground of the memorial.
She walked through a field of ghosts as her passage triggered the holograms housed in the grave markers. Familiar faces appeared one after another. Friends. A few acquaintances. Even an enemy or two. People who'd disliked Kira for one reason or another and she them.
They were the fallen now.
