S C O R P I O N 

My wrist holo flashed for the fifth time in the last ten minutes. So I took it off and launched it to an unknown corner of the room.

"Don't you need to get that?" Makayla murmured, sprawled naked across my bed.

I ran my hand all the way from her shoulder to the edge of her hips enjoying the shudder that went through her in the darkness. Makayla was preoccupied with mapping out the intricate tattoo running along my bicep.

"Some early hours are for bed... Especially when you're in it." I answered, tracing the curve of her hip with my eyes.

"Good. I was already planning to drag you back if you tried." She stated, not taking her eyes off the dark ink. The light from the city hit her in deep blues and greens through the curtains. She was like a mirage from my dreams with gold hair piling down one side. I smiled lazily and met her eyes. 

"I don't care if Proximo himself tried to take me out of here by force. The Division have had enough of me." I returned darkly.

"I haven't." She quipped, rolling forward off her shoulder and pressing my own back down against the bed. Her skin heated every inch of me under the sheets as she scanned my face. My jaw. My lips. She ran her fingers over them slowly and they parted.

"I wonder..." She mused, watching me closely.

"Mmm?"

"Are you getting another fusion cycle made?" She blurted.

I broke into a grin taking her hand and threading my fingers through her own.

"I can... Why would you be asking such dangerous questions?"

She pinned our hands beside my head and leaned towards me slowly, "I might miss it. Besides, if I'm on the back you won't dare to drive like a maniac again."

I arched an eyebrow with unhidden surprise. But my mind was already racing ahead with other items of business that didn't involve the end of a gun.

"I think it's time we furnished this place like the old keep." I decided, enjoying the grin that swept across her. I missed oak doors and their grandeur and history. I missed plush rugs that told stories and oil paintings that had seen so much. They stood the fight against time. They were warrior's items.

"You know the last person that gave me a credit bar with no limit greatly regretted it..." She drawled, "–in fact my trip to the dressmaker's ended on the wrong side of Scorpion herself."

I tilted my head at her with faux concern.

"You're right you would cripple the Division's finances in an afternoon."

"I could always buy you a dress–"

My glare was enough to cut off her words into a giggling child.

"The leader of Merridian's criminal empire does not walk anywhere dressed without lethality."

"But she would look gorgeous." She cooed.

"Don't make me show you where I hide a weapon in this bed, Makayla." I answered flatly.

There was only challenge in her eyes at the notion. I rolled my eyes and she dropped down to kiss my neck. I breathed out slowly pulling her body closer with my free hand.

"This place is a bit big to furnish fully." She mumbled against my skin making me shiver.

"I'm more interested in my personal space being filled with it." I retorted, running my hand up her back. "–and the armoury... my woman likes swords."

She grinned before pulling her face up to scan me, "Alex I'd kick your ass at fencing and you know it–"

"Only if I had to fight with rules." I snorted.

"It's a sport of course it has rules!"

"Fighting is not sport–it's a skill."

"I can always teach you."

I smirked darkly and moved both hands onto her hips under the sheets bringing her dangerously close between my legs. She sucked in a breath.

"You can teach me anything you want."

She was flustered but trying to keep her cool–it was adorable.

"Fine I'll get Proximo to play fair–"

I cut her off with my teeth on her lower lip making a groan leave her. I twisted under her quickly until she was below me and shook my head slowly. "No. You won't."

"Take me to buy some swords then."

"I know a guy." I quipped, fighting a smirk.

I wonder how Makayla would react to burning plasma swords. Proximo did want to acquire a few either way... They would be useful in training.

"Real. Fencing sabres, Alex." She warned, reading my thoughts.

"We'll get... a small number of different types. Then we can show our recruits how a royal gets put on her ass despite her sports training."

"Bite me. Scorpion."

I thought about that for a moment before ducking under the sheets and obliging her.

But we couldn't hide up here in a perfect world forever. Because my second was through with waiting. A fist hit the door across the room. Makayla was still giggling. I drew up my face and placed it on her stomach with a groan.

"–put some damn clothes on and be an adult!" He shouted through the metal.

I yanked the sheets back and debated grabbing my gun off the floor.

"Why don't you go find Kuzo's stripper! She would be more than–"

Makayla crushed my shout with her hand over my mouth. I started laughing around it despite it all. Something smashed on the other side of the wall.

"Scorpion. I will open this door in moments if you do not come out!" He snarled.

It must have been bad. It was always bad. But fucking really?

I ripped the rest of the sheets off me and jumped out with murder on my mind before throwing them over Makayla in a wave of white. She sighed and dumped herself down under them.

I pulled on a pair of cargoes from a wall closet and was halfway in a combat skin when he scanned his security clearance and levelled a dark glare at me. 

"She's not a stripper." He said by way of good morning.

I ignored him and stormed past, grabbing a pair of boots and my wrist holo as I went.

"This better be good."

"The Silver Sun have a new name and a new leader."

I stopped in my tracks and looked him over more seriously. He drew a holopad before me in the hallway and a set of soldiers appeared before me in dark navy armour with white trim.

Dawn Guard.

"They couldn't come up with a better name?" I mocked in a growl, storming for the lift. Proximo took my right and flexed his fingers against his gloves.

"Imperial grade equipment and far better training but fewer numbers. They had been integrating with the rebels before our little intervention last night."

"Good."

"How is this good?" He demanded. The lift flew downwards.

"They've placed nice shiny new targets on their chests. I like to see where our enemies are, unlike these rebel insects that crawled out of every shit hole Hades could manufacture." I growled.

Proximo considered this and tucked his hands behind him.

"A valid point. But why the rebels? They may be seeking a presence outside the inner sectors, Scorpion... What then?"

I turned to him with a serene smile. One that held onto so much more of this city than the upper class ever could. I patted his shoulders as the doors of the lift open.

"Then we can remind them exactly why they should stay inside Sector 10."

* * * * *

Proximo nursed a whiskey with me before the blue glow of the pool. His harsh half face tattoos curving around his frown.

"I never took you for a swimmer." He grunted, noting our environment I chose for privacy. I regarded the tropical plants with a smirk.

"I'm not." I just like the reminder of the one on Merridian's space station. "–and you look like you have more to tell me."

He swept the glass back along with the contents and I joined him before lowering it to the circular table. He filled them both and cracked his neck.

"Dawn Guard has a new chief in command."

I raised my glass and tilted the amber liquid. "Who is he."

"She."

I met his eyes quickly over the rim and smiled slowly. "Oh, I say. We cannot have two queens now can we, Proximo."

His grunt spoke of his own exasperation. He watched the waterfall between the plants a moment deciding something. "How we play this is very important." I waited on more, "–she is more than just aware of you... She seems to have sent us an invitation."

I spat out a mouthful onto the table and Proximo glared at the droplets on his hand.

"Elegant as ever, Scorpion–"

"What the fuck is the upper Sector leader doing to even be seen communicating with us? That's the worst bait I have ever seen–"

"Or a ruler with a new mind frame."

I stopped and set the glass down, rolling my wrist.

"Speak."

He sighed. "This may be the only opportunity we get to work with an upper sector ruler for once. Coexistence is not impossible–perhaps she sees value in that."

I stared him down wondering if he actually bought his own words. I took a sip and shook my head. "And pray tell, second, what sort of assurance do we have that we won't be shot on sight the moment we step into Sector 1?"

"She was quite convincing... Something very different from expectation." He murmured intently.

I sighed and leant back in my chair.

"Just show me."

A holo pad slid across the table before the hologram lit up above us in rich colour.

She was not what I expected.

"Division 52." The smooth confidence drawled across the holo. Young. Much younger than I had thought that old boys club in Sector 1 would have allowed– "I feel that our predecessors have gotten our relationship... rather wrong over the decades." A small smile caught her lips and the intelligence was sharp in her copper eyes. Half her hair was up and the other half down in jet black waves... An outer Sector style. 

"I'd like to correct that mistake now. I am formally requesting a meet with Scorpion herself. We are hosting an event in five days to mark the new passing of powers to the Dawn Guard in the Emperor's tower. I want you to be there." She finished, bridging her fingers. "As a show of trust I am removing all guards from the building, Scorpion. You may bring whomever you see fit so we can dictate what this city's future will be. Your attendance will be considered friendly. Your lack of attendance will be considered hostile." I glanced at Proximo, he wordlessly rolled his eyes.

 "I look forward to meeting you in person, Scorpion." She finished, staring directly at me through the hologram.

It cut off abruptly.

"Well that was dramatic." I drawled, downing the rest of the glass.

"Another trip to the Emperor's tower could be fun." He noted.

I smirked and caught those steel eyes filled with dark amusement.

"Not much of an Emperor's tower anymore..."

"We could start again on the right side of an Empress." He emphasised, raising his glass.

"Do you buy her removing the guard from that tower?"

"Not even slightly. But she didn't say anything about us bringing our own... and a few waiters."

I laughed and nodded. "I like where your head is. But I don't think working with the upper sectors will be as easy as a dinner party."

"The outer sectors–even our own people will be disgusted." He agreed.

"But it might prevent many deaths. We could negotiate the removal of sector weapon systems still in their control..."

At this Proximo became more amicable. "I say we go in force."

I nodded thinking of the last time I was present in that tower. Those biting words of a dead man that thought he was too far ahead of the game. Vanta fish venom had been his end. I had to wonder if this new Empress would meet the same fate... She had the look of ambition.

"What does she call herself?" I blurted.

"I know as much as you do. This came only hours ago but you were... otherwise engaged with royalty of your own." He drawled with a knowing look. I returned it with a grin.

"Do remind me to interrupt when you engage with that hooker–"

His snarl made my whiskey taste better.

"Florence." He growled.

"Sex is a dangerous profession. Especially when the client is my second."

"She left Kuzo's–ran actually. Not that you care." He growled low.

But this did catch my attention. I leaned forward on my forearms and regarded him more closely. "God. You care for this woman?"

He returned my gaze steadily without an answer. But that was answer enough for Proximo.

"And you trust her?"

He snorted a laugh. "I'm not that far gone."

"But you will be." I noted seriously. "That expression of yours is telling me other things."

It morphed into a hard glare. "It didn't take Xavier so long to gain your secrets." He accused, in something close to a boyishly argumentative tone. My smile became darker.

"The great Proximo... Heartless. Emotionless. Ruthless. Until he gets sight of a common prostitu–"

He flipped the table between us and I danced backwards with a hard laugh as glasses shattered around us. A blade was already glinting in his fist. "Perhaps you'd like to finish what we started in that rebel hideout?" His voice was calm but his eyes told of a different fury.

I raised my hands slowly, palms up.

"Forgive me." I spoke slowly, keeping the humour out. "It seems I'm underestimating your capacity for feelings. I've never seen it in you before." I emphasised.

He came back to his senses and lowered the blade with a huff.

"It's not your concern."

"It is when you start pointing sharp objects at me." I muttered, picking up a half smashed bottle up and dripping the remains into my mouth. Proximo kicked a glass and crossed his arms.

"So the invite?"

"We're going. In a show of force." I winked.