Jasina doesn’t argue, but she doesn’t agree either. She just stares at those words.Sigma Factory.
If the Tau City station hadn’t blown up, there would’ve been a sign there too.Tau Factory—Dimension 702. Maybe the train travels along some break in reality? A line so bright you cannot miss it?
No. A line so bright you cannot even see it.
But the facts are the facts.
We were… prisoners. Like my mother said. Except that’s not quite the right word.
We were…livestock.
We werepigs.
I almost laugh here. No wonder the Council and Matrons were so horrified when I threw that insult at them after Clara walked through the doors.
But we’re not a part of the factory anymore. Jasina’s not a pig, she’s the Godslayer’s Courtesan. And we’re gonna blow the whole thing up one Looking Glass at a time.
When we get inside, we set the self-destruct first, but it’s got a ten-hour timer, just like the last one. So we loot the tower. We take water, and food, and boots, and packs while the Extraction Master and his family sleep. We don’t wake them. We don’t even warn them.
If this plan is going to work, there can only be one Extraction Master left at the end.
And that’s me.
We don’t stay for the explosion. We leave, heavy with plunder, enter the train with the Workers, and we rest, sitting on the floor in the back, drinking our water, and lacing our boots, and eating our food.
We feel it, though. The whole train shakes when the Looking Glass blows.
But it’s a relief and soon after, we’re curled up together on the floor, letting the rhythm of the train lull us to sleep so when we stop, we can get up and do it all again.
CHAPTER FIFTY-SIX
I’m not awake, but I’m aware. That’s the conclusion I came to as we were traveling towards Delta City. I knew I was feeding Anneeta and Tyse was feeding me. She was getting spark and I was getting jumps. But at some point, that ended.
At some point,Iended. And right now, I’m sitting in a… nothingness. An emptiness. Except everything is white.
“I died?”
The man kinda shrugs. “In a way. But like all things, it’s relative.”
I squint at him. “What do you mean?”
“We’ll get there, don’t worry. But you were saying…?”
“Was I saying something?”
“You were. It was about your friend, Haryet Chettle.”
“Oh. Yes.” I blow out a breath. “It’s so frustrating these days. My mind is so scattered.”
“It’s normal.”
“Who are you again?”
The man smiles at me. It’s one of those indulgent smiles. Like he’s answered this question a million times. “Delta.”
“The god.”
“Correct. Maybe we should start over again?” He doesn’t sound mad. He doesn’t even sound impatient. But I’m getting the feeling that he’s tired. Like I’m wearing him out. “Do you know where you are, Clara?”
