Author Games: The Absent Empress

Finals: Maanyo

 Sakura Sato was, in every sense of the word, beautiful.

Jet-black tendrils of hair hung from a tightly-bound high ponytail. Crimson lipstick brought a dash of color to her pale, unblemished face; silver earrings dangled in a glittering motion that entranced Aar as he sat and watched. But something in Ms. Sato's eyes had changed, something subtle and undefinable. Whereas those eyes had blazed two weeks before, filling the room with an intensity that had astounded Aar, today they were subdued. Today they pulsed, silent; today they were the glowing embers of a fire that Aar could no longer see.

Cherry-red curtains had been drawn over the windows of Ms. Sato's office, the only light streaming from bulbs set in the ceiling and a decorative Japanese lamp on Ms. Sato's desk. The beige carpet had been recently vacuumed, and the withered lilies that had filled a vase on the sideboard had been removed. Yet the room felt just as devoid of life as it had in the weeks before Ms. Sato's arrival. Though she had re-entered the space, her presence had not touched it. Neither had the headquarters touched Ms. Sato; days after her rescue, she faced Aar with the same lifeless expression she had worn upon fleeing the Empire base, upon melting its metallic infrastructure into the ground.

"So. Maanyo." Ms. Sato's voice seemed to die where it originated, the sound traveling scarcely farther than her own lips. Her eyes met Aar's, though, and she stared into him unflinchingly. "I want to extend my personal thanks for your efforts these past few weeks. You and the other heroes have been indispensable in taking down...well, not just the Canadian convict, but also the criminals that held me hostage. And Azazel, too. Azazel was..."

"I know he was a Sentry, ma'am," said Aar quietly. The word Ms. Sato had used, "indispensable", still echoed in his mind. Sixteen heroes had been killed performing the tasks she had mentioned so briefly. Perhaps these heroes had been indispensable at the time, though, in the aftermath, Project Phoenix had been forced to continue without.

Ms. Sato nodded. "Of course. It's a shame he allied himself with criminals, but I'm grateful to you for apprehending him."

Her answer burned inside of Aar. Allying oneself with criminals—how could Ms. Sato not recognize the hypocrisy? Intelligent as she was, she could not sit there and forget the dark place from which she herself had come. But her immaculate posture betrayed nothing, and those eyes, deep and dull and dark, obscured her inner machinations.

At the very least, Aar had not forgotten.

"Ms. Sato," he said slowly. Across the desk, Ms. Sato only blinked, any surprise or anticipation muted. "At the Empire base..."

Aar had seen her file. He had not told the other Project Phoenix members, even after they had emerged breathless from the underground facility, even after they had boarded Ms. Sato's plane and slumped in their leather seats, utterly exhausted. He had been given ample opportunity to describe the file he had abandoned, in detail, and his character guaranteed he would have been believed. But he had said nothing, until today.

The file had been accurate, as far as Aar could tell. He now knew the crimes she had committed, the prestige she had secured for the same Empire that held her hostage. He knew her family name had served as cover for countless atrocities, murder and blackmail and offenses too vile for Aar to consider without feeling nauseous. Some of these she had done herself, while others had been perpetrated by her comrades. She knew of it all, though. She had witnessed enough.

Aar had been called into this office to discuss the future. Nora had already quit, and, while King and Reason seemed to be staying, the continuing status of Project Phoenix was uncertain. Aar was the last to speak to Ms. Sato, and he would be the last to answer on his future with the project. But before Aar could answer Ms. Sato—before he could feel confident in any decision that involved this woman—Ms. Sato would need to answer to Aar.