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The Lakelander king, another Silver, responded in kind, with the full support of his own nobility They wanted our rivers, to get access to a sea that wasn’t frozen half the year, and the waterour rivers The h electricity so that even the Reds can have some I’ve heard rumors of cities farther south, near the capital, Archeon, where greatly skilled Reds build machines beyond my comprehension For transport on land, water, and sky, or weapons to rain destruction wherever the Silvers ht of the world, a nation y and power All the rest, like the Lakelands or Piedmont to the south, live in darkness We were lucky to be born here Lucky The word makes me want to scream

But despite our electricity, the Lakelander food, our weapons, their nue over the other Both have Silver officers and Red soldiers, fighting with abilities and guns and the shield of a thousand Red bodies A war that was supposed to end less than a century ago still drags on I always found it funny that we fought over food and water Even the high-and-hty Silvers need to eat

But it isn’t funny now, not when Kilorn is going to be the next person I say good-bye to I wonder if he’ll give ionnaire takes hione" His voice cracks, though he coughs to try and cover it up "I can’t do this They--they won’t takeout of his eyes

"Thereanyone can do No one has escaped conscription and lived"

He doesn’t need to tell me that Every year, soed back to the town square and hanged

"No We’ll find a way"

Even now, he finds the strength to ses faster than any flame "I’ to get me either So we run"

The army has always been my fate, my punishment, I know that But not his It’s already taken too o," he sputters, but at least he’s arguing At least he’s not giving up "We’d never survive the north in winter, the east is the sea, the west is more war, the south is radiated to all hell--and everywhere in between is crawling with Silvers and Security"

The words pour out ofwith Silvers and Security And we ht under their noses and escape with our heads" My , that"The black les everything frole people?"

His mouth opens, about to spout a thousand reasons why this won’t work But then he s involved with other people’s business I don’t have ti toto s we can’t sell to the usual shop owners we have to take to Will Whistle He’s old, too feeble to work the luht, he sells everything you could want out of his on, from heavily restricted coffee to exotics from Archeon I was nine with a fistful of stolen buttons when I took my chances with Will He paid me three copper pennies for them, no questions asked Now I’es to stay afloat in such a sht even call him a friend It was years before I discovered Will was part of a round, others the black market, but all I care about is what they can do They have fences, people like Will, everywhere Even in Archeon, as ioods all over the country And now I’ht make an exception and transport a person instead

"Absolutely not"

In eight years, Will has never said no toshut the doors of his wagon in my face I’m happy Kilorn stayed behind, so he doesn’t have to see me fail him

"Will, please I know you can do it--"

He shakes head, white beard waggling "Even if I could, I am a tradesman The people I ith aren’t the type to spend their ti another runner from place to place It’s not our business"