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Source: collected/027-volaxis-episode-2.mp3
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00:00:00.100 Speaker 1 Velaxis.
00:00:42.640 Speaker 1 Chapter Three: Appointment with an Eraser.
00:00:47.980 Speaker 1 Saya Nefarari stood on the balcony and dreamed. It was a beautiful view, all things
00:00:53.860 Speaker 1 considered. She had beautiful things, expensive things, but she could
00:00:59.840 Speaker 1 not truly appreciate them. It was difficult not to resent one's prison cell, even if
00:01:05.840 Speaker 1 the bars were gold. She slid her gloved hands along the top of the wrought iron
00:01:11.340 Speaker 1 railing as she walked the length of her prison. The stone towers of Velaxis rose in
00:01:16.720 Speaker 1 every direction around her, tapering off into more mundane, squat wood and
00:01:22.600 Speaker 1 stone buildings in the far south where engineers had not yet bothered to erect
00:01:27.280 Speaker 1 proper towers. Those buildings were for outsiders, foreigners. The
00:01:33.060 Speaker 1 effect was intentional. If you visited the capital city, you would eternally be
00:01:38.560 Speaker 1 looking up at the people you came to deal with. Few towers were higher than Saya's,
00:01:44.080 Speaker 1 though.
00:01:46.860 Speaker 1 Hers was a floor taller than standard, the noble residences a floor higher than
00:01:51.980 Speaker 1 that, and beyond all of them, like the lord's own hand burst from the earth
00:01:58.040 Speaker 1 and reaching toward the sky, was the Spire, a shimmering hard iron and white
00:02:04.040 Speaker 1 marble structure, the only one of its kind as far as she knew. It
00:02:09.759 Speaker 1 loomed over everyone else. That effect was also intentional.
00:02:16.800 Speaker 1 Saya leaned forward over the railing and took one long, mournful glance at the
00:02:22.880 Speaker 1 alley below. The alley was blocked off by stone walls on the sides.
00:02:28.840 Speaker 1 If she cast herself off this balcony, she would fall into that walled section,
00:02:34.240 Speaker 1 another cage. There, her caretaker, warden, and friend of twenty years
00:02:40.300 Speaker 1 would extract the stone of power from her corpse to be given to some other luckless
00:02:45.240 Speaker 1 soul. A black stone. A memory stone, far
00:02:51.080 Speaker 1 more valuable than its current container. Saya turned away from the railing, her
00:02:57.080 Speaker 1 long black dress flowing like a midnight river behind her. "Not today."
00:03:04.140 Speaker 1 She went back into the sitting room. It was a chore to get the rest of her dress's
00:03:08.560 Speaker 1 train back inside. It was not a practical outfit. It was Lord Seafall's will that
00:03:14.460 Speaker 1 she wear it, or rather, Lady Seafall, because Lord Seafall stopped caring about his
00:03:20.000 Speaker 1 eraser the moment she fell into his collection. He'd fought so viciously for her
00:03:25.640 Speaker 1 acquisition, yet she'd only seen him once in the many years since.
00:03:31.320 Speaker 1 Lady Seafall, though... Well, it could not be long enough until she saw
00:03:37.200 Speaker 1 her again. There was a polite knock at the door, followed by the sound of unlocking.
00:03:43.720 Speaker 1 Saya moved to the small table in the room and took a seat in the only chair. The
00:03:49.060 Speaker 1 door cracked open, and a sturdy woman with thick curly hair leaned halfway into the
00:03:53.720 Speaker 1 room. "Oh, good, you're alive. You have an appointment." "I
00:03:59.480 Speaker 1 have three." "No, just the one now. Apparently Mrs. and Mr.
00:04:05.220 Speaker 1 Dacquer made up. They're not ready to forget each other just yet." "Oh,
00:04:11.200 Speaker 1 how lovely." "Oh, yes. True love, I'm sure."
00:04:17.600 Speaker 1 Jules stepped completely into the room and closed the door behind her, then moved
00:04:22.079 Speaker 1 with practiced efficiency around the room, picking up. She straightened the sofa
00:04:26.660 Speaker 1 cushions and pulled back the drapes, letting that dreadful light in. "You bathed
00:04:32.060 Speaker 1 this time, right?" Saya rolled her eyes, poking at the breakfast on the plate in
00:04:37.640 Speaker 1 front of her. She was careful not to get any stains on her black gloves. Not that
00:04:43.260 Speaker 1 anyone except Jules would notice them. "You smelled to the high heavens last week."
00:04:49.200 Speaker 1 Jules collected the plate and the silverware off the small table and plucked the
00:04:53.520 Speaker 1 fork from Saya's hand. "I wasn't done with that." "Hun,
00:05:00.460 Speaker 1 honey, if you haven't touched it already, you're not going to. Now, let me see your
00:05:04.760 Speaker 1 makeup."
00:05:06.740 Speaker 1 Saya closed her eyes and sighed, then tilted her face up for inspection.
00:05:15.800 Speaker 1 She opened her eyes and gave Jules a piercing gaze. "There's my girl.
00:05:21.740 Speaker 1 You look tired, though. Can't have you scaring off the customers."
00:05:26.980 Speaker 1 Jules walked over to the vanity and pulled out a small container of concealer. She
00:05:31.860 Speaker 1 started applying it under Saya's eyes with a gentle thumb, just enough concealer to
00:05:36.560 Speaker 1 hide the dark circles, but not the crow's feet. That was the trick to convincing
00:05:41.520 Speaker 1 makeup. Dull the imperfections without hiding them. Accentuate the features without
00:05:46.800 Speaker 1 flaring them. Then Jules pulled Saya into a gentle hug. She
00:05:53.140 Speaker 1 let herself be hugged. She let herself be ornamented and perfumed.
00:05:59.120 Speaker 1 A few minutes later, Jules was gone, and she was seated on her cushioned chair next
00:06:04.020 Speaker 1 to the backless sofa. She could see her own reflection in the standing mirror across
00:06:09.692 Speaker 1 the room. Somehow, she looked the part, and she could play that part
00:06:15.912 Speaker 1 for a little while longer.
00:06:19.032 Speaker 1 There was another knock on the door. Saya pulled her shoulders back and lifted her
00:06:24.152 Speaker 1 chin, fixing her eyes on the exact spot where her client's face should be when he
00:06:29.592 Speaker 1 opened the door. She settled into the cool confidence of mastery.
00:06:35.532 Speaker 1 This was a confidence she did not need to feign. It was confidence born of
00:06:41.372 Speaker 1 competence. "Please, come in."
00:06:47.052 Speaker 1 The door opened, and a man of below-average height idled in the doorway, hands
00:06:53.012 Speaker 1 fidgeting. She lowered her gaze, just a little, and let a faint smile play
00:06:58.912 Speaker 1 on her face, like a spider greeting the fly. That's what they
00:07:04.572 Speaker 1 expected from an eraser, after all. The man, perhaps a decade her senior,
00:07:10.632 Speaker 1 had black hair turning gray. He adjusted his spectacles and looked around her room
00:07:15.932 Speaker 1 in quick, darting glances, as if expecting spies in every darkened corner.
00:07:21.352 Speaker 1 [clears throat] "Miss Nefraari?"
00:07:27.312 Speaker 1 In response, Saya rose and walked over to him in one long, fluid
00:07:33.312 Speaker 1 motion, accentuated by her flowing, ridiculous outfit.
00:07:39.452 Speaker 1 She reached partway toward him with an upturned palm, waiting for him to
00:07:45.272 Speaker 1 take her hand. It was just far enough away that he would have to step into the
00:07:51.032 Speaker 1 room to take it. The first step always had to be their own.
00:07:56.332 Speaker 1 "I am, [chuckles] I am not certain I'll be needing your services
00:08:02.532 Speaker 1 after all." "You came here for a reason."
00:08:08.372 Speaker 1 "I did." "Why was that?"
00:08:13.892 Speaker 1 "Be- 'cause I'm told you're the best."
00:08:20.032 Speaker 1 Saya smiled coolly. A subtle touch was best with this one. He would bolt if
00:08:26.052 Speaker 1 she tried to force the matter. Mr. Barnes placed a shaking hand in hers.
00:08:32.392 Speaker 1 She gave it a reassuring little squeeze and softened her smile just a little.
00:08:38.312 Speaker 1 And just like that, he was in the web. No need to torture him further.
00:08:44.812 Speaker 1 Saya led Barnes to the couch. He didn't lay down immediately, though. Instead, he
00:08:49.832 Speaker 1 alternated drumming his fingers on his legs and checking the time on his pocket
00:08:53.972 Speaker 1 watch. "I must say before we begin that
00:08:59.772 Speaker 1 secrecy is of the utmost importance in this matter." He
00:09:05.672 Speaker 1 was stalling for time, like a teenager's first visit to the pleasure house. She
00:09:11.332 Speaker 1 liked these clients. There was an artistry here. It was so much
00:09:17.312 Speaker 1 better than scrubbing the minds of Lady Seyfall's servants for gossip.
00:09:21.932 Speaker 1 "I believe you've already discussed the details with my attendant. Your
00:09:27.992 Speaker 1 memories will not leave this room." "Yes, but what of
00:09:34.012 Speaker 1 your master?" Saya shrugged. "What the Lord and Lady
00:09:39.652 Speaker 1 Seyfall do is at their discretion. If they ask, I will purge them
00:09:44.992 Speaker 1 myself." "And if they use them against me?"
00:09:52.012 Speaker 1 Saya managed to keep the annoyance from her face. There was absolutely zero
00:09:57.852 Speaker 1 chance the Seyfalls were even slightly interested in this lesser noble's affairs.
00:10:03.472 Speaker 1 They rarely interviewed her at all. It seemed paradoxical, but anyone who had really
00:10:09.412 Speaker 1 useful memories would never go to their rival's eraser. "You are
00:10:15.152 Speaker 1 free to leave, Mr. Barnes." "No, no. I'm just
00:10:20.772 Speaker 1 concerned. It's the Black, after all."
00:10:26.772 Speaker 1 Saya's smile went a little toothy then. "Yes, the evil Black.
00:10:33.372 Speaker 1 It's perfectly safe. It will leave a mark, true, but how many of your peers
00:10:39.352 Speaker 1 at a party have the mark already? You'll hardly stand out." Barnes
00:10:45.052 Speaker 1 smiled sheepishly. "And as you said yourself, I am the
00:10:51.132 Speaker 1 very best." "Okay.
00:10:54.792 Speaker 1 [sighs]
00:11:01.312 Speaker 1 " He lay down on the couch and closed his eyes comically tight, like a child
00:11:06.312 Speaker 1 awaiting foul medicine. Saya slipped off her black gloves, leaned over
00:11:12.352 Speaker 1 Barnes, and pressed her fingers to each side of his head, just behind the ears.
00:11:18.372 Speaker 1 Her hands turned black, as if dipped in liquid shadow. There was no
00:11:24.272 Speaker 1 need to reassure him further. The moment she formed a connection with his memories,
00:11:28.752 Speaker 1 the man fell unconscious. As long as she held his mind, he was trapped here.
00:11:33.812 Speaker 1 "I'm looking for a young woman with red hair."
00:11:41.052 Speaker 1 Saya rolled her head around and closed her own eyes, letting her own mind drift
00:11:46.872 Speaker 1 into his memories. And like the fluid strokes of a paintbrush, she began to
00:11:52.452 Speaker 1 work on her canvas, a canvas made of memories. Saya
00:11:58.632 Speaker 1 skimmed through a life, erasing the memories that didn't fit the story, the story of
00:12:04.572 Speaker 1 an aging man with wandering eyes but faithful hands, a man
00:12:10.552 Speaker 1 who had seen a beautiful young woman in his store and turned his cheek.
00:12:16.682 Speaker 1 She erased a hundred gifts given in secret. She erased the smile of a pretty
00:12:22.682 Speaker 1 young woman with red hair. She erased dozens and dozens of evenings of
00:12:28.382 Speaker 1 naked playfulness, most of which never involved the act of sex itself.
00:12:34.722 Speaker 1 She erased poems and long walks through his rooftop garden, until there was only the
00:12:40.562 Speaker 1 story of an aging man who longed for the connection to a younger and unexpectedly
00:12:46.442 Speaker 1 interested woman.
00:12:49.682 Speaker 1 Until the only memories that remained told a story, a perfect story
00:12:55.722 Speaker 1 of a frustrated but faithful husband. A perfect story and
00:13:01.722 Speaker 1 two small black scars behind the ears where she had entered his mind
00:13:07.762 Speaker 1 and extracted the truth.
00:13:13.742 Speaker 1 An hour later, Saya was washing her face in the basin, removing one layer of
00:13:18.742 Speaker 1 performance, when she heard the bolt on the door unlock. Jules came back into the
00:13:24.762 Speaker 1 prison.
00:13:27.082 Speaker 1 I forgot to mention, the washers are coming today. Didn't want them to surprise you
00:13:31.922 Speaker 1 when they start working outside. Saya went back to dressing down.
00:13:37.942 Speaker 1 Why the stones need to be washed is beyond me. Doesn't the rain put them out of a
00:13:43.762 Speaker 1 job? Jules just shrugged and left the room, bolting the door again from the
00:13:49.422 Speaker 1 outside. Saya gripped the edges of the sink basin, her knuckles
00:13:55.282 Speaker 1 going white. Then she began to put her makeup back
00:14:01.002 Speaker 1 on. Her performance was not done for the day.
00:14:08.642 Speaker 1 Chapter 4 Pursuit
00:14:12.762 Speaker 1 Tessa followed the two men in black at a great distance, just long enough to confirm
00:14:17.842 Speaker 1 their direction. It had been easy to guess their destination. There weren't many
00:14:22.802 Speaker 1 erasers in the city.
00:14:25.562 Speaker 1 Once they disappeared down the next alley, she stepped around the corner. She knew
00:14:30.062 Speaker 1 roughly where she was. It was the kind of place she usually worked very hard to
00:14:35.542 Speaker 1 avoid. These were commonry slums, towers so decrepit that the layers of
00:14:41.402 Speaker 1 moss and slime actually dyed the stones a sickly green-brown. Most of the
00:14:47.222 Speaker 1 entry doors were sealed up. As bad as things were inside the towers, the people
00:14:53.102 Speaker 1 relegated to living here didn't want anything coming in from the ground floor
00:14:57.142 Speaker 1 either. She moved quickly between the stone buildings, trying to avoid the worst of
00:15:02.262 Speaker 1 the filth. It was an impossible task. The remains of birds and rodents dotted a
00:15:08.242 Speaker 1 carpet of bird droppings and human waste. The acrid, putrid scent was so
00:15:14.122 Speaker 1 strong it was nearly a solid thing.
00:15:18.722 Speaker 1 Long wet stains ran down the towers from the windows, making them look like
00:15:24.362 Speaker 1 tear-stained statues. It took Tessa ten minutes to make her way to a public
00:15:30.422 Speaker 1 tower with an open entryway. Three teenage boys with wooden clubs stood outside.
00:15:36.882 Speaker 1 When she tried to push past them, they stepped in her path and one of them put their
00:15:41.382 Speaker 1 hand out, palm up.
00:15:45.282 Speaker 1 Toll is three bronze. Tessa gave him a weary look. This was
00:15:51.302 Speaker 1 a toll, but it was also a test. You think I'd be here if I
00:15:57.222 Speaker 1 had three bronze? She waved down at her clothes. The same
00:16:02.802 Speaker 1 grime she'd tried to avoid now caked everything beneath the knee. There was
00:16:08.442 Speaker 1 simply no avoiding it down here. Another boy sniffed the air, then curled his
00:16:14.382 Speaker 1 face up in disgust. This is blue boy's turf. You ain't coming up here. I can
00:16:20.442 Speaker 1 trade. The first boy shoved her back a step. Not hard enough to knock her
00:16:26.242 Speaker 1 down, just hard enough to get her moving in a different direction. But the second
00:16:31.402 Speaker 1 boy who'd spoken motioned for him to leave her alone. Trade what?
00:16:37.362 Speaker 1 Tessa made a show of fishing around in her pockets. She deliberately avoided the
00:16:42.342 Speaker 1 pocket with forty brass coins wrapped in cloth so that they wouldn't make a noise.
00:16:48.282 Speaker 1 She couldn't pay them. If they knew she had three coins, they would see if she had
00:16:54.322 Speaker 1 more. No one had exactly three coins. I've
00:16:59.522 Speaker 1 got a chew stick.
00:17:03.162 Speaker 1 She raised the half-chewed stick into the air. It was Dawn's. She
00:17:08.962 Speaker 1 never touched the stuff. It was cheap and it gave you a pretty good buzz, but it
00:17:13.342 Speaker 1 made your teeth turn yellow if you did it too much. The second boy snatched it out
00:17:18.402 Speaker 1 of her hand. Give me that. Then he motioned for her to go past them. The other two
00:17:24.462 Speaker 1 boys, for all their earlier pestering, obeyed immediately. The blue boys parted and
00:17:30.162 Speaker 1 she went inside. Like every tower, the base of the tower was almost entirely
00:17:36.122 Speaker 1 stone. She had no idea why. It seemed like there was a lot of wasted space here.
00:17:42.042 Speaker 1 There were no other rooms. There was only a narrow hallway and a set of stone stairs
00:17:47.082 Speaker 1 going up. Tessa took the stairs all the way to the seventh floor rooftop. There was
00:17:53.142 Speaker 1 no one up here. She pulled a loop harness from the crate at her feet and tested it
00:17:58.162 Speaker 1 by pulling with both hands. It felt sturdy enough, so she attached an iron hook and
00:18:03.722 Speaker 1 put her arm through the loop harness and hooked it onto the cable. She dangled at
00:18:08.782 Speaker 1 the start of the zip line, supported by the harness under her armpit and standing on
00:18:13.862 Speaker 1 her tiptoes. Slowly, she moved forward towards the edge of the building.
00:18:20.242 Speaker 1 Tessa gave the hard iron cable a pluck with her other arm. It hummed back with a
00:18:25.842 Speaker 1 deep, resonant twang. Then she shrugged and walked over the edge of the tower
00:18:31.942 Speaker 1 and stepped off into thin air. There was that feeling of nervous anticipation in her
00:18:37.482 Speaker 1 stomach that never quite went away. That moment when you thought, maybe this is the
00:18:42.762 Speaker 1 time I fall. And then the flexing cable caught her, and instead of falling, she went
00:18:48.342 Speaker 1 gliding forward and out. The wind blew her short hair out of her face and made her
00:18:54.022 Speaker 1 eyes water. She found it impossible not to smile. That line ended on a
00:18:59.962 Speaker 1 platform, ten buildings away and three floors down from where she'd started.
00:19:06.442 Speaker 1 She climbed a set of exterior stairs, eyeballed her destination, and picked another
00:19:11.922 Speaker 1 zip line going in roughly that direction, and began the process again. It took just
00:19:17.902 Speaker 1 five more minutes to get as close as any public zip line could take her. No one
00:19:22.622 Speaker 1 without the right passes got any closer to noble residences. And dressed as she was,
00:19:27.962 Speaker 1 a sewer rat had a better chance of getting past the checkpoints. So Tessa climbed
00:19:33.362 Speaker 1 down to the ground floor again and waited. She needed another way in.
00:19:39.742 Speaker 1 Fortunately, she knew of two men carrying a blanket that were headed this way who
00:19:45.562 Speaker 1 might have some ideas on how to get in. Why create your own plan when you could
00:19:51.622 Speaker 1 just use someone else's?
00:19:56.342 Speaker 1 Ten minutes later, two men in dark blue uniforms walked through a nearby
00:20:00.982 Speaker 1 intersection. They didn't have a suspicious blanket, but they did have a big wooden
00:20:06.522 Speaker 1 cart loaded with ropes, brushes, and buckets. Tessa watched from her hiding
00:20:12.482 Speaker 1 place as they approached a guarded checkpoint at the next intersection. This was her
00:20:16.942 Speaker 1 chance. She sprinted after them, waving her arms in the air. Hold on,
00:20:23.202 Speaker 1 guys, wait for me. The very same two men who had taken Reese
00:20:29.762 Speaker 1 stopped just before the checkpoint and stared flaming daggers at her as she
00:20:35.082 Speaker 1 approached. She grinned wildly as she slowed to a walk. Tessa grabbed a spare
00:20:40.982 Speaker 1 worker's hat off of a hook on the cart and placed it on top of her head. The one
00:20:46.142 Speaker 1 without facial hair shot a nervous glance back at the armed guards not ten feet away
00:20:51.142 Speaker 1 from them. She'd timed it perfectly.
00:20:55.682 Speaker 1 You can either take me up there with you, or I can blow your cover. I'm guessing
00:21:01.222 Speaker 1 you're not stone washers. I'm a friend. Let me prove it. Choose fast.
00:21:07.122 Speaker 1 Guards are watching. Their glares softened to mere murderous intent.
00:21:13.202 Speaker 1 But these people were professionals. Yes, her gamble was working. They turned around
00:21:18.722 Speaker 1 and kept walking toward the checkpoint. Bringing my niece today. Hope that's all
00:21:24.782 Speaker 1 right. The first of the two guards looked up. Learning the trade?
00:21:31.442 Speaker 1 The FMR agent managed to look even more bored than the guards. He offered up a
00:21:37.282 Speaker 1 noncommittal shrug in reply. Might as well. She ain't good for much else.
00:21:44.422 Speaker 1 The guard gave him a lazy nod, and then they pulled open a series of iron gates to
00:21:49.082 Speaker 1 let the washers through. Tessa gawked up at the noble tower, letting her mouth hang
00:21:54.642 Speaker 1 open. She flashed the guard a huge smile. It's my first day. The
00:22:00.342 Speaker 1 guard shook his head and then closed the gates again. Well, try not to fall off
00:22:05.702 Speaker 1 then.
00:22:07.502 Speaker 1 The three of them rounded a corner, just out of view from the guards, and Tessa was
00:22:12.762 Speaker 1 careful to drift out of reach from the other two. She was careful to leave her
00:22:18.182 Speaker 1 hands in plain sight. The cart stopped rolling.
00:22:24.142 Speaker 1 Silent, calculating stares.
00:22:28.142 Speaker 1 Bring me up. I want to see her.
00:22:32.222 Speaker 1 The one without facial hair looked at the other. So that was the one to talk to.
00:22:37.782 Speaker 1 Tessa leveled a serious but non-threatening stare at the one with the goatee.
00:22:44.042 Speaker 1 He was tense as hard iron cabling, but he didn't move. Not yet.
00:22:50.922 Speaker 1 Why?
00:22:53.022 Speaker 1 Because I'm worth more alive than dead, and I need the eraser to prove that to you.
00:23:00.842 Speaker 1 The FMR agent stared her down for a full ten seconds. Perhaps
00:23:06.762 Speaker 1 this had been a bad idea. There was such a thing as going too far. He could
00:23:12.822 Speaker 1 kill her if he wanted to. He could tell the guards she'd fallen. But
00:23:19.442 Speaker 1 he relaxed, just a little, and started untying the ropes from the outside of the
00:23:25.062 Speaker 1 cart. We'll see.
00:23:30.162 Speaker 1 Saya Nefari watched as three stone washers hoisted their platforms to the top of the
00:23:35.602 Speaker 1 tower. They made a show of washing the stones around her balcony before sliding
00:23:41.562 Speaker 1 a heavy blanket of tools onto the balcony. The two men, Will and Arnos,
00:23:47.922 Speaker 1 if those were their actual names, got off first. The third was a young woman with
00:23:53.282 Speaker 1 her back turned. Will and Arnos unwrapped the load they'd brought with quiet
00:23:58.922 Speaker 1 efficiency. When they finished unloading the blankets, Saya's heart skipped a beat.
00:24:05.022 Speaker 1 She recognized this man. Is that And then,
00:24:11.622 Speaker 1 just as the young woman was climbing onto the balcony to join them, Arnos grabbed
00:24:16.102 Speaker 1 her by the arm and held her between the dangling platform and the safety of the
00:24:20.442 Speaker 1 balcony. Who is this? He shook the young woman once, still
00:24:26.262 Speaker 1 holding her dangerously over the edge. Saya's heart skipped again. Put her down!
00:24:33.202 Speaker 1 Arnos let her climb down onto the balcony. The newcomer took off her hat and brushed
00:24:39.222 Speaker 1 the short, dark hair out of her eyes, a broad smile on her face.
00:24:46.402 Speaker 1 Hi, Mom.
00:24:49.802 Speaker 1 Tessa Rin Nefari, what have you done?