'When I first met you, I told you I'd be watching you closely. Do you recall?' 

Ashcroft looked across and searched Regan's face. The girl stared back at her with the same penetrating gaze she'd had when they first met. Her clothes were still covered in the fine tan dust from the arena. They walked side by side away from the training grounds, their feet making soft crunches on the unsealed gravel surface of the road. Ashcroft could hear the sound of cheers in the distance as Pohlman read out the list of candidates who had passed the first round. She hadn't waited to hear the announcement; she knew Regan would be on it. As soon as Regan had stepped out of the arena, Ashcroft had intercepted her and led her away from the others. Sarafina had tried to follow, but one look had been enough to send her away. 

'I've played your game. All of your people got to walk away intact, more or less.' 

The land around the training grounds was a rocky expanse of hard packed soil and stunted grass. Ashcroft and Regan were the only two people walking down the road that led back to the Silverwater barracks. Ashcroft took a breath. She could smell the dryness in the air around her, mixed with the faint scents of the people who had walked along the road hours before. Beside her, Regan was a cloud of living smells edged with the chemical scent of hair dye and the pervasive red tinge of blood. 

'Your fights were impressive. Your skills were unparalleled, and your technique flawless.' 

'You say that like it disappoints you.' 

'My expectation was never that you'd fail because of poor technique. Your fighting abilities were more than enough to secure you a position at Silverwater.' 

'Why don't I feel like I'm being offered congratulations?' 

'There will be a push for your acceptance. Squadron leaders who watched your fights will request it, Pohlman may even insist upon it, but as long as I'm in charge, you will never become a member of Silverwater.' 

'I disgust you don't I?' 

'I told you I'd be watching you during the trials. I wasn't watching for your skill; I was watching to see if I could detect even the tiniest glimmer of human feeling in you, but there was nothing. There's no sympathy in you. That's the difference between silencers and protectors -- a protector feels the weight of human life, but it's clear from everything about you that the lives of others are essentially valueless to you.' 

'So that's the way it is?' 

Ashcroft sighed. 'That's the way it is.' 

'You talk like someone who's been on the other side of that divide before.' 

Ashcroft tried not to let her emotions show on her face. 'Life is long, and I've met all sorts of people, including some I wish I hadn't.' 

'That wasn't an answer.' 

Ashcroft felt a surge of irritation. 'Because I have no desire to discuss my past with something like you.' 

Regan looked down the road. The Silverwater barracks was ahead of them. 'You knew I was a silencer without even seeing me fight. I'll be gone soon. Humour me.' 

Ashcroft looked down at Regan for a moment. 'Perhaps you're the only one who would fully understand,' she said finally. 

'Perhaps.' 

'I know what you are, because I was like you once. A killer without remorse.' 

'And yet you don't want me to join your little toy army.' 

'I said I was like you, but I came here because I'd changed. Because I wanted to make the world a better place with my sword. You're not like that. You're still nothing but a killer, and the world has more than enough of those.' 

Regan looked away at the rolling landscape like she was remembering something from the distant past. 'You must know by now that swords don't make the world a better place. Swords are a tool for killing. Nothing more.' 

'Those don't sound like your words. They sound almost human.' 

The look Regan gave her was overflowing with contempt, as if she'd intruded on a private moment uninvited. 'A tool is only fit for its purpose. It's pointless to pretend that it's something it's not.' 

They walked through a set of gates into the Silverwater barracks. Ashcroft noticed that there were fewer people around than usual. Most members of Silverwater were involved in the trials. At the centre of the barracks was a small parade ground, which was usually used for announcements and official visits. When they reached it, Ashcroft stopped. 

'It's unfortunate that you're a killer. With skills like yours, you could have made a great protector.' 

'This wasn't my idea. It makes no difference to me.' 

'Where will you go?' 

'Into the city. That's where I'll find the person I'm looking for. There are scum there who'll tell me what I need in exchange for helping them rise in the gutter.' 

'More trade in human misery.' 

'If there wasn't a demand for us, there wouldn't be a demand for you.' 

Ashcroft shook her head. 

Regan shot her an irritated look. 'What?' 

Ashcroft was silent for a moment as she brushed some hair across to the ruined side of her face. 'Your view of the world is fatalistic and twisted.' 

'My view of the world is based on reality, not wishful thinking and misplaced optimism.' 

'It's sad to hear those kinds of words from someone so young, but then again I suppose you haven't been young for a long time.' 

Regan shrugged. 'We all have our little personal tragedies.' 

Ashcroft slipped a hand into the pocket of her Silverwater jacket and pulled out a thin plastic card. She threw it to Regan. 

'What's this?' 

'It's the key to your room on barracks. I don't want you staying with Sarafina anymore.' 

Regan's brow furrowed. 'Is this another change of heart? Do you want me in your club now?' 

'I wouldn't let you into Silverwater with a signed reference from the emperor of the known universe.' 

'You can't want me around just for my winning smile.' 

'I want you somewhere I can keep an eye on you. The least I owe the rest of the world is to give you the same opportunities that Silverwater gave me.' 

'So this is some sort of community service?' 

'Call it what you want. I'll arrange for your things to be brought over from Sarafina's house this afternoon. Tomorrow, I'm going to see if I can start untwisting your world view.' 

'Do what you want,' Regan turned and started to walk away. 'I can't help but wonder though,' she said. 'What will you do if you fail?' 

Ashcroft watched Regan's back as she walked away across the parade ground. 'Let's hope for both our sakes that I don't,' she said quietly. 

Ashcroft stood for a moment, then walked towards the main administration building. Tomorrow promised to be an interesting day. There was a deep well of anger in Regan that never seemed to run dry, as if she wanted to kick the whole world to the ground and keep on kicking. 

Ashcroft rubbed her eye and walked up the stairs to her office. The air was quiet and still.  

She paused outside the door. 

There was the scent of a person leading into her office. She closed her eyes and sampled the air. They must have entered the building on only minutes ahead of her. 

'Don't hang about sniffling,' said a male voice from inside. 'It makes you sound like you have a cold.' 

Ashcroft pushed open the door. 'I don't remember having any appointments for today.' 

There was a man slumped on one of the chairs at the back of her office. He was wearing a dark suit that had been made to fit a broader, heavier man. The jacket failed to conceal his creased shirt and loose tie, and there were deep bags under his eyes that made him look like he'd been revived from the dead. 

'Not even a smile for an old friend?' he said. 

'We were never friends. What do the special investigators want with me, Latimer?' 

Latimer rubbed his eyes. He looked unbelievably weary. 'You were recently approached by a silencer named Regan. You might remember her. She's got bright blue hair and an attitude like a feral skunk.' 

'The name is familiar.' 

Latimer shook his head. 'Don't play games with me, Ashcroft. I know you know who I'm talking about.' 

'What about her?' 

'I want her. Correction, I need her.' 

'If it's you, there must be an angle. What do you need her for?' 

'Have you ever heard of an organisation called Unity?' 

'No. Should I have?' 

'Not if I've been doing my job. Unity is one of the most dangerous criminal organisations the investigators have ever come up against. I need Regan's unique skills to help me dismantle them from the top down.'