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“Behind me. It’s impolite to lurk where someone can’t see you during a conversation.”

Kahn frowned at her slightly-panicked-but-trying-to-hide-it tone, something tickling the back of his memories. But the brief flash of insight quickly faded into the shadows.

There was a lot of darkness in his mind and it blocked out most everything else. He’d fought the Air Phases for years, and that gave him some purpose, but now there was little point in it. Parald was gone. Kahn hadn’t been the one to kill him, much to his regret, but the bastard was still nothing but a lifeless, headless corpse. It felt unsatisfying. Unfinished.

Without revenge to sustain him, Kahn was spiraling. He’d been mostly dead inside since the Fall, but now his very grip on civilization was waning. Kahn spent most of his time roaming the ancient structures of his homeland. There was a constant and growing pull to wander deeper into the forbidden reaches of the forest.

Alone.

It was how many Light Phases chose to meet their end, over the centuries. They cut ties and were absorbed into the jungle. “Gone Wild” the old folks had called it, back when Kahn was a boy. Escaping into the endless trees sounded so peaceful. He knew if he listened to its lures he would die, but still the Wildness called. And he was beginning to answer.

Daven rolled his eyes and made a show of shifting into Randa’s line of sight. “Fine. Sorry.” He held up his palms in surrender. “Geez, I might as well go hang out with those Agora snobs, if this is how it’s going to be. I had no idea women like you were so fussy about manners.”

“Women like me?”

An “Oh shit, I just said something wrong” expression flickered over Daven’s face. Kahn recognized it well, because he’d worn it plenty of times himself.

Kahn was infamous for saying wrong things. Inadvertently, consistently, and epically. Putting his foot in his mouth had always been one of his defining personality traits, much to the dismay of his family.

Daven blinked at Randa. “Yeah, you know… uh…” He floundered under her imperious stare and looked over at his brother for help.

Mannus bravely took up the cause. “Right. Women who… um…”

“Women who fuck monsters for money and power.” Kahn supplied helpfully. “How much did Parald pay you, anyway? How much is it worth to sleep with a sociopathic madman, who wiped out most of our kind?”

Randa stared at him silently.

Kahn stared back.

Rysimer cleared his throat, trying to get the conversation on track. “Look, Randa, the point is, we’re going to need more specifics before we make a deal with you. Who is this guy you want dead?”

The woman’s attention flicked back to him. “Someone I’m not fond of.”

“But why do you want him dead?” Julius stressed. They were all asking questions, but he was truly the only Light Phase who gave a damn about the “whys” of violence. The rest of them focused on the “whens,” “wheres,” “whos” and “hows.”

“He’s sending me flowers.” She said mildly. “At least, I assume it’s him.”

“Flowers?” Why was that a problem? His sisters had loved flowers. Didn’t most women?

Julius shook his head. “Don’t you think killing somebody you ‘assume’ is sending you flowers might be a bit extreme?”

“No.” Randa intoned again.

Kahn grunted, not entirely disagreeing with her. Just because someone hadn’t hurt you yet, was no reason to let them off the hook. “You believe it’s a threat?” He surmised, considering her reactions.

“I know it’s a threat.” Randa assured him flatly. “A bouquet arrives every night.”

“Maybe you’re paranoid. Maybe he just thinks you’re pretty.” Kahn said it in a deliberately snide tone. Although, who could blame the bastard? She was pretty. His eyes traced over the smooth waterfall of her dark hair, unable to help himself.

Looking at her, the Wildness quieted. He wasn’t sure whether he liked that or not.

Randa didn’t respond to the barb, and that just pissed him off more. “This person is going to die, gentlemen. If not by your hand, then I’ll hire someone else.” She folded her fingers neatly in her lap. “I would prefer to do this job myself, actually. It’s always better to do things yourself. But he’s a soldier and I’m not. Outsourcing seems wise.”

Kahn scoffed. “I thought you didn’t know exactly who he is? Now you say he’s a trained soldier?”

“I have a strong suspect in mind.”

“A ‘strong suspect’ is enough to move forward with an execution?” Julius still didn’t look satisfied with her reasoning. He was finicky.