Rebel Born (Secondborn #3)(106)

“He gave me his apologies,” I reply. “He had to leave early. Ransom contacted him. They’ve had a breakthrough extracting the VPMD implants from their test subjects. He’s on his way back to our Halo Palace to oversee the trial. He said to tell you they’ll share their findings with you soon.”

“That’s exciting!” Roselle replies. “I feel sort of bad for him, though—working on the holiday.”

I snort. “Don’t feel too bad for him. He took Flannigan Five and Nine with him. They keep him super busy.” Roselle and I both burst out laughing.

“We have news, too,” Hawthorne says, glancing at his wife.

“That’s right,” Roselle says soberly. “There’s a newly discovered anchor to a world that we haven’t been able to clear yet.” She tips a crystal goblet of punch to her lips and sips it.

“Which one is that?” I ask.

“They call it Earth,” she says, her eyes following the dancers who twirl around the floor by us. “We don’t think Crow ever made it there, but we can’t be sure yet.”

“What an odd name.” I sigh. “Why would anyone name a world after dirt? Anyway, I can go with you and help. I’ll be able to sense if Crow’s hiding there.”

Reykin’s arm remains around my waist as he moves beside me. “Your ability to locate Crow is uncanny, love, but you can’t go this time.” He takes my hand and squeezes it conspiratorially. “You’re pregnant again. You need to take things easy and let someone else handle it. Besides, you don’t want our secondborn daughter to arrive in a world with a funny name, do you?”

“Why not? She’s bound to be a rebel, just like her father.”

“All of them will be rebels,” Reykin replies.

“How many children are you planning on having?” I ask.

“A dozen at least, and we’ll let them choose if they’re Stars or Swords or Diamonds, or—”

My heart flutters wildly for this man. “Let’s just have this second one and see how it goes.” I pause, thinking. “In fact, let’s only ever say second one and never say secondborn again.”

“Excellent idea,” Reykin says close to my ear, sending a shiver of pleasure through me, “and we’ll only ever call our other children, the third one, and the fourth one, and the fifth one . . .” He takes my cup and sets it aside before leading me out onto the dance floor with him. There, Reykin sweeps me into his arms, and I know without a doubt that I’ve never been more alive, more in love, or more beloved.





Glossary

air-barracks. Kidney-shaped dormitory airships that dock on the military Trees in Bases like the Stone Forest. They transport troops and house them.

The Apiary. An outwardly decrepit-looking military Base on an island near the Fate of Seas. A Census stronghold.

birth card. Enacted by Greyon Wenn the Virtuous, birth cards are a rudimentary way to give permission to a couple to have a child. A couple is issued a card, like a license, which allows them to have a baby.

Black-O. A Census soldier enhanced with advanced military-grade artificial intelligence technology embedded in his or her brain. Each soldier is subject to mind control by programmers and handlers who are often Census agents. See also VPMP.

Black-O mode. The state of being a Black-O soldier. It can entail being mind-controlled by a third party or using artificial intelligence to solve problems, follow commands, and complete tasks.

Bermin. Ancient, human-sized, bat-like creatures. They’re carnivores who dine on blood mostly from humans. Thought to be extinct, they have been genetically brought back into existence through genetic engineering.

Brontide Mountains. Also known as the Brontides, they were named for the sound they make—it’s the shudder of distant thunder. The tectonic plates beneath them shift, which makes the rumbling noise.

Burton Series-7 fusion cannon. A fusion-energy cannon designed by Burton Manufacturing. The weapon was originally used as a lightweight fusion rifle, but the Series-7 was redesigned for use as a prosthetic device to physically enhance a soldier. It’s a First-Tier Option for Soldier Augmentation in Agent Crow’s journal called the Transhumanism Directive.

Burton Rapier. A jetlike aircraft used in combat. Usually black with bulky fairings at the air-compression ports.

Burton Weapons Manufacturing. A Sword-Fated weapons manufacturing company owned by Edmund Burton and his firstborn son, Malcolm Burton.

Census. A branch of the government comprising agents whose mission is to hunt down and kill unauthorized thirdborns and their abettors. Their uniform is a white military dress shirt, black trousers, black boots, and a long tailored leather coat. Their Bases are underground beneath the Sword military Trees at Bases like the Stone Forest Base and the Twilight Forest Base.

Census Transition Day. The day at the Opening Ceremonies of the Secondborn Trials when Census massacred the attendees and revealed their plans to initiate a new world order—one controlled by Census. Also referred to as “CTD” and “CT Day.”

chet. A nonaddictive substance that is used to relieve tension and induce relaxation. Looks like a white stamp.

Clarity. The leader of a Fate.

Class 5Z Mechanized Sanitation Unit. A robot designed to repair and maintain sewage and septic lines. Phoenix was one of these robots but has now been enhanced by Reykin Winterstrom with AI and weapons.