Chapter 97: Honor

  “It's a backup, Mr. Algreil,” Boss said, “and we can't promise so much without those parts you gave us for the last one, but it's the best we've got.”

  Rudy mumbled something that was probably thanks.

  Boss put a huge hand on his arm. “Mr. Algreil... are you sure you're in a state to do this?”

  Rudy shrugged the hand away. He felt...

  Fine?

  Yeah, right. Physically, sure. A little blood loss and a concussion were nothing a night in one of the best medical facilities on Etemenos couldn't fix. But 'fine,' he thought, isn't something I plan on having a real close acquaintance with any time soon.

  Ever.

  “It's something to do,” Rudy said. He stalked to the boarding elevator before Boss could object and draped a palm over the button that would take him to his mecha's cockpit. It rose, silent on slick, efficient systems, until he was staring the Epee in the face.

  The cockpit opened, and Rudy stepped inside.

  He fell backwards into the seat and hung his head.

  Ellie and Avalon had tried to get in touch with President Ferrill. They apparently hadn't had any luck. Nonetheless, Avalon was sure the president would do right by Chloe.

  Avalon was a Principle-damned fool.

  Nobody went through so much trouble to entrap a person they just wanted to force some Limiters on. They were terrified of Chloe. If they didn't trust her with her powers, why would they trust her to take regular injections of something that would seal them away – and probably take half her personality along with her powers?

  Idiots. Bastards.

  Chloe wouldn't hurt a fly, Rudy thought. She'd have never done any of you, not even the worst of you – was there any other kind? –, the slightest harm.

  Hell, she wouldn't even have her powers if...

  If...

  Rudy slammed his fists on the armrests of the Epee's seat.

  He would fight in the Finals of the Etemenos Cup.

  He would defeat the Divine Auric Drake.

  He would be the Etemenos Cup Champion.

  He would live the dream he'd had for the better part of a decade.

  He would trade every Principle-damned bit of it for just one second of holding Chloe again.

  He should have listened to her dad. He should have gotten her away from Etemenos.

  He and Chloe couldn't have been together as long as she needed her powers, but she could have been safe. She could have been free.

  He'd give her up in a heartbeat in exchange for that.

  Rudy slumped forward until his head bumped the Epee's main screen. He'd left a smear of blood on his other machine in just that spot. He supposed he was staining this one, too, by crying on it, but he could give a shit.

  Marcel Avalon's voice cut through his anguish. “Crimson Phoenix,” the ex-admiral said softly.

  Rudy didn't respond.

  Avalon said, “My friend.”

  Rudy cracked an eye. “The hell do you want, Marcel?”

  “Are you in a condition to fight?” Avalon asked.

  Rudy rolled his eyes. “Might as well. I mean, what the hell, right? What's the worst that could happen?”

  The worst that could happen already had.

  “Crimson Phoenix,” Avalon said.

  “I have a freaking name, you idiot,” Rudy snarled.

  “As do I,” Avalon said, “but I do not address Rudolf Kaine Algreil. I address the Crimson Phoenix.”

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  “Shut up, Marcel.”

  “No.”

  “Leave me the hell alone!” Rudy's eyes snapped up and he glared through his tears. “Just... shut up. Shut the hell up! Principle! You think I give a shit about this stupid tournament? About that stupid name?”

  “No,” Avalon repeated.

  Rudy forced himself to take a deep breath. He blinked. He looked at Avalon through clear, or at least clearer, eyes.

  The Divine Auric Drake wore a flight suit that seemed to be made of spun gold. He'd abandoned his naval uniform in favor of a pure tournament mechaneer's attire, matching his mecha. His jaw and his flinty amber eyes were set in hard lines. “You do not care about any of this,” Avalon said. “I do not blame you.”

  “Then why are we doing this?” Rudy asked.

  “Because it is a thing that deserves to be done, Crimson Phoenix,” Avalon said. “It is a thing that deserves to be done right.”

  “Screw that,” Rudy said. Shakily.

  “Over our heads, your Miss Hughes is probably being escorted to the Senate chamber. They will hear her case, and they will try her. I will not lie to you. They will be quick and their judgment will be at least as harsh as the law permits.”

  “Chloe's probably already dead,” Rudy said.

  Avalon shook his head. “President Ferrill swears otherwise.”

  “You've talked to her?” Rudy's eyes widened. His breath quickened. “Does she know where Chloe is? Is Chloe – are she and Mili – are they okay?”

  “Easy, Rudolf,” Avalon said. “I spoke with the president but briefly. She does not intend your fiancée harm, but she will do as the law demands. By law, that means mandatory Limiters for both young women unless they choose to enter the Animus Hunter Corps.”

  “But Chloe won't need mandatory Limiters,” Rudy said. “Once she and I...” He coughed. “I mean, hell, I guess I could hug Mili for a couple minutes, too. It's not like I won't be glad both of them are okay.”

  Avalon's hard-set mouth crinkled into a faint, brief smile. “I'm sure you will be.”

  “So what are we wasting time here for? Yield, and I'll even let you tag along when I go collect Chloe's dad from the Senate.”

  “It isn't that simple,” Avalon said. “President Ferrill is not the sole power in the Senate. Errard Zelph and the senators who support him are attempting to maneuver her into a vote of no confidence. Allowing an Imperial to go free, even if she agrees to take Limiters, will not instill confidence.”

  “So the law goes down the crapper the minute Miz Ferrill's career is in jeopardy?”

  “Of course not! But the senate session will drag on regardless, and if the partisans of the Animus Hunter Corps achieve their goal, they will kill Miss Hughes and the law be damned. You and I can stop that.”

  “How?”

  “With the Victor's Boon,” Avalon said. “If I am victorious, I will ask that the Hughes family be restored, not just its patriarch. To deny this would be political suicide when it becomes clear that none of them are any danger, a clarity Algreil Aerospace's media holdings can lend to the proceedings after you have relieved Miss Hughes of her powers.”

  “Sounds great, man,” Rudy said. He made a mental note to ask for the same thing, since even the tiny part of his brain that hadn't despaired of saving Chloe and her dad had drawn a blank on how to rescue both. “That's all the more reason we go there now.”

  “No,” Avalon said.

  Rudy groaned. “What the hell is the hold up? I've got to save Chloe.”

  “The Victor's Boon must be earned, Crimson Phoenix. It cannot simply be given.”

  “Oh, please. There's no provision in the rules for denying a Boon to somebody just 'cause the other guy waved the white flag before the match even got started. Or if there is, I'll give you a freaking love tap before we go.”

  “No, Crimson Phoenix.” Avalon glared. “I do not mean it must be earned because of rules.”

  “For politics? Screw that,” Rudy snarled. “I only care about saving Chloe!”

  “Listen to me, damn you! I know you are hurting and scared, Rudolf, but you have to listen.”

  Hurting and scared? Rudy winced a little. So much for his reputation as a badass. Not that he could bring himself to care for more than a second. Well, maybe two seconds. No more than three.

  “The Victor's Boon is a recognition of the good the Etemenos Cup does for the people,” Avalon said. “This tournament, all tournaments – they are neither pointless nor wasteful. In this arena, we show power and it is not abhorrent. It is for the people, that they might feel it if only vicariously, instead of it being used against them. That is no bad thing.”

  Rudy shrugged. “Screw the people, too, Marcel.”

  “Most do,” Avalon said. “But I will not. You and Errard Zelph have made this tournament a thing of ugliness and brutality. Now you would make it a joke by asking me to yield before we even fight?”

  “Yes,” Rudy said.

  Avalon said, “Why should a tournament that has given nothing to the people give anything to whoever 'wins' it?”

  Rudy hesitated. “You're saying... if we do that, the senate will deny the Victor's Boon because we didn't earn it?”

  “In their place,” Avalon said, “I would.”

  So would I, Rudy thought. If I weren't me, hell, if I were me a year ago, if I didn't love Chloe, I'd be pissed as hell if some mopey bastard beat me in the Etemenos Cup and then threw the final round like it didn't mean anything.

  Some mopey bastard.

  Heh.

  Rudy found he hated weepy men, too.

  “We have the chance to redeem this Cup,” Avalon said. “To make it a thing of glory, of honor. There is little enough of both around us.”

  Rudy found himself nodding.

  “Rudolf Algreil and Marcel Avalon want the same Victor's Boon, my friend,” Avalon said. “But the Crimson Phoenix and the Divine Auric Drake both want to be the one to ask for it.”

  “You're damn right we do,” Rudy said.