Eternity's War

Book 1: Chapter 3

Marion, code-named Sierra, drove through the streets of Nanping Qu. Home to Athenia's low-level industry, it was significantly more quiet than Shangwu. It housed more warehouses than it did apartment complexes, which made it the obvious choice for Skye, Nikolai, and Ren to establish a base there the year before.

Sierra parked the old van outside the large warehouse. She was shorter than Skye, but a much more adept fighter. She wore an oversized poncho and a tall, broad hat, both of which cloaked her body and face well. Skye exited via the passenger side and held his comm up to the handle, locking the vehicle securely. They opened the front door to the warehouse and walked inside, shutting it tightly behind them.

The warehouse was much more hospitable during the day. Long skylights brightened its interior and helped to eliminate its dull lifelessness. But the atmosphere inside was one of tension, and had been that way for some time now.

Skye walked across to Ren, who was working away at her desk once again. She'd managed to squeeze in a few hours sleep but decided to wake up and resume her efforts at finding the president.

"How did it go?" Ren asked without looking up. "Pointless?"

"Absolutely."

She let out a short laugh. "Did he have any useful information?"

"No, just the usual. He sends his love again."

Ren scoffed and shook her head, not relishing the thought of being the recipient of the obscure man's affection.

Skye stood behind her and directed his gaze to her computer monitor. "Have you found anything?" he asked cautiously, not wanting to anger her with his persistent hopefulness.

"No. Although it looks like Archibald is back inside Government House. He checked in earlier this morning."

Skye rubbed his eyes, hoping that the president would not stay there for long. The duo looked to each other, each wondering what to do. As long as Archibald was housed in Athenia's primary political stronghold, they were powerless to stop him.

Sierra stood in front of Skye and stared up at him. "Shall we train?"

"Already?" Skye groaned. "We've only been back for a few seconds." He stared into the eerily vengeful eyes of the short woman. He had spent months trying to guess her age, which she never once bothered to disclose. Her face was neither young nor old. He closed his eyes and sighed. "Fine. I'll be right out."

She said nothing, walking off silently.

Ren laughed. "She's just eager."

"There was one thing that I thought was a little odd," Skye said, changing the subject back to Nikolai. "He didn't leave the cafe. I asked him if he was going, and he said that he was going to stay. Usually we part ways at the same time."

She thought about his words. "You think maybe he's planning something in Shangwu?"

"Maybe. I just assumed he'd be too busy this week to be sitting around drinking coffee all day. Plus he was acting a little suspiciously. It's almost as though he wanted me to question why he was still there."

"That sounds like Nikolai, but it's probably nothing. Remember, it's always a game with him."

"I know. But he doesn't seem too concerned about finding Archibald either. It sounds like he's given up."

Ren shook her head. "I doubt that very much."

Skye looked down to the ground and tried to push the confusion from his mind. "Maybe I'm thinking about it too much. Maybe I'm just desperate for a lead."