stomach fluttered. In Grave, woman wore veils and heavy, shapeless gowns. They kept their eyes downcast and spoke softly.
‘My name is Test, baby bats. Listen well. The mountain is strewn with paths that connect Ixion’s clubs. They are well lit and safe enough. Should you venture off them and into the dark, you will not return. Remember, when you live in a place of darkness you also live with creatures of the dark.’
Test’s slow, husky voice might have been just next to Retra’s ear, caressing her with a warning.
‘How do they do that?’ whispered Rollo. ‘It’s like she’s in my head.’
Retra ignored him, straining forward.
A few cocky ones in the crowd gave catcalls.
Lenoir stared them back into silence.
‘The Guardians –’ the woman continued.
‘Ripers,’ Rollo hissed in Retra’s ear.
‘– are here for your guidance and protection. Ask us anything but heed our advice. We dispense our justice. Respect us. Do not attempt to … be with us. We are apart.’
This time the catcalls were cacophonous.
Test reached for Lenoir’s hand; pale exotic creatures united.
Lenoir spoke again. ‘Ixion has six churches on consecrated ground: Vank, Illi, Agios, Goa and Los Fien. That is where you may slumber safely and gain sustenance. There is only one church you are not permitted to enter: Danskoi on the highest tier is our domain. If you enter you will not return.’
The other Ripers gathered around Lenoir and Test. Retra tried to memorise their faces.
Test spoke again. ‘Now only the cleansing ceremony remains before you can begin again. Drink Lava from the dispensing stations then remove your clothes and bring them to the pyres.’
She gestured to the pyramids of brush in front of the railings that safeguarded the crowd from the precipice.
For a moment nobody moved then Ripers began to walk amongst them, snatching at hats and tossing them in the air, tugging at the coats of those still clinging to Grave memories.
Rollo stripped his long pants off. Underneath he wore nothing.
Retra recoiled from his dangling nakedness, her chest banging her ribs hard with shock, but around her others began to do the same.
She became caught in the melee as they grabbed cups of Lava and surged towards the pyres. The drink seemed to heighten their fervour, and their hot flesh brushed against her.
A female Riper with waist-length streaks of black and white hair and raised scars along her hairline appeared alongside Retra and wrenched at her veil and coat. The veil fluttered to the ground like an injured moth and the grey wool tunic caught, twisted and tore where it was most worn.
With eager hands the Riper pulled it apart like a curtain.
Retra screamed at the violation but the Riper was already tossing her clothes high onto the piles of branches along with the others.
Rollo danced off to join the milling, naked bodies gathering like children eager for a bonfire, leaving Retra huddled on the ground trying to cover her skin with her arms.
‘You need cleansing, dirty little bat.’ The scarred Riper pushed something into her hand. ‘Drink this. It will stir your blood.’
As Retra put the cup to her mouth, the Riper bent to unhook the remains of her tunic and push it from her shoulders. The garment slid down and she smeared a warm sticky substance over Retra’s back.
The scarred woman’s touch panicked her beyond sense. She pulled away from her and ran, zigzagging through the crowd. Everyone was screaming and singing and pushing in the opposite direction.
Retra tried to remember Test’s words. Ixion has six churches on consecrated ground. Vank, Illi, Agios … you may slumber safely and gain sustenance.
Dressed only in her underwear, she stumbled up the stairs. A cable kar waited there, swaying gently. She ran into the first carriage and banged the speaker. ‘Take me to a church.’
Nothing happened and she feared that the shouts and clamour near the base of the stairs meant the crowd had followed her.
She picked a name she could remember from the Riper’s list. ‘Vank. Take me to Vank.’
The kar groaned and moved forward, gradually picking up momentum.
Cries of ‘wait for us’ and ‘come back’ trailed after her in the dark. She shrank from them as she had from the prying fingers of the Riper, huddling into the hard leather of the seat.
‘There’ll be others.’ A last shout faded.
The kar transported her higher, clunking through an interchange before arcing onto a subsidiary line.
Retra peered through the window, wondering why daylight never came here. Joel had talked of Ixion but she had not really listened, not really