Amber had never seen Underground so quiet. She hadn’t been around for the opening itself, but Valerie told her several times that her ears were ringing by the end of the first night. Even on slow evenings, there was some kind of chatter. But not tonight, all of the usual patrons mumbled to themselves, or stayed silent all together in their own form of paying respect. It had been just over 24 hours since Valerie was brought back into Pythe, and word had spread to everybody about her condition. Amber had thought that the waves of friends, acquaintances, and strangers alike coming to offer their condolences would get under her skin. She thought that it would just be because they felt it was what was expected, or some shallow show of token compassion. But from the moment she walked in she found some small comfort in people coming to offer well wishes, promise favors if she needed anything, or even offer to pay for her tab tonight. Valerie never made her pay, but the gesture was nice.

Amber took a seat at the bar by herself, old Jake stepping over and opening up a bottle of her usual order and sliding it over to her.

“How you holding up?” He asked her.

“I was about to ask the same thing.” She replied. “Doing ok, Doc says that Val’s at least stable, but it’s hard to tell what direction things are going to go in. How about you? Doing ok watching the place on your own?”

“Well, it’s only been a day, but things aren’t too bad. Not like I’ve never been left alone with the place before.” He said, giving a soft shrug. “But I just want you to know… everyone here is rooting for you two. Val might be a worse slave driver than the overseer I worked under when this place was a water pump… but she’s a good boss.”

“Thanks, Jake.” Amber said, smiling softly before he turned to take care of the other patrons. After a few more moments of near strangers approaching Amber and wishing her well, she was happy to see Dane descend down the stairs, and take a seat next to her.

“Please, don’t ask me how I’m doing. If I hear that one more time tonight, I think I’m going to scream.” Amber said, as she saw the look of pity on Dane’s face. He gave her a short laugh, before Jack slid him a drink as well.

“So, normal night? Act like nothing is out of the ordinary?” He asked.

“Oh no, not at all.” Amber replied, tapping her fingers against the bar. “Because… I actually wanted to talk about something.

This is stupid. This is so stupid. This is probably the stupidest thing you’ve ever done.” She thought to herself.

“I think we should sign up for the Gilding.” She finally said, practically blurting out the words. The silence between the two until Dane finally spoke up seemed to last for hours. She watched as his face shifted between expressions, thinking about the proposal she had made.

“Wow, why?” He finally asked.

“Well, you said you get a plus one if you win, yeah? I put Valerie down as mine, and find her a doctor that can wake her up.” She replied.

Dane let out a laugh loud enough to draw attention from the other patrons.

“And you think that comes with what, a free coupon for brain surgery or something?”

Amber shot her friend a nasty glare, one that stifled his laughter as he realized how serious she was taking this idea.

“I mean, Amber, are you sure that’s the best idea right now?” He asked, giving her a stern look.

“What? You’re scared all of the sudden?” She asked, almost taunting him.

“You know that I’m not scared, but I think that you might not be giving this a lot of thought.” Dane replied.

“I’ve given it all the thought I need.”

“Well what if Valerie wakes up and finds out you went for a trial? Or worse, to find out that you got yourself killed?”

“What if I stay here and she never wakes up?” Amber snapped back. Dane let out a loud sigh, and Amber knew he had no counter to her argument.

“Come on, Amber.” He said, shaking his head. “I don’t think it’s the right thing to do, ok? I’m sorry I even brought it up to you. I wasn’t even going to sign up as long as Mama is around, and I damn sure should have never tried to drag you into it with me. It was my own issue, and I should have kept it that way.”

“But now I want to sign up. I’m the one that dragged Valerie along with us, it’s my fault that she ended up hurt.”

“Now come on, you know that ain’t true.” Dane replied. “Adlam’s were the ones that did it, and they’re not even allowed in town anymore after the shit they pulled.”

“Dane, look, I appreciate it, but you aren’t going to make me feel any less responsible.” Amber said, her voice starting to turn sour as she took a swig of her drink. “I don’t want to sign up without you, but I will if I have to.”

Dane shook his head, scratching at the back of his neck as he grunted in frustration.

“Guess there really isn’t anything I can say to you that doesn’t make me look like a hypocrite, huh?” He finally asked, punctuating his question with a chuckle as he tried to lighten the tension. Amber, however, wasn’t easily cheered up.

“I’m going to do this Dane, I’ve already made up my mind. I owe it to Valerie.”

“Do you really think she would want you to do this, though?”

Amber knew the answer, she knew that Valerie would forgive her if she were awake. She might give her the silent treatment for a week, but she would forgive her. But Amber couldn’t possibly forgive herself. It was as much for her as it was for Valerie, a chance to atone for her mistakes.

“Quit trying to talk me out of it. Are you in or not?” Amber finally asked, looking down at the counter ahead of her.

“Amber, I still don’t think it’s the right move for you to make. I can’t promise I’ll go with you, but I can at least promise I’ll try to talk you out of it all the way to the sign up. Deal?” He asked, holding out his hand for Amber.

Amber smiled softly, reaching out to meet his large, calloused, grip.

“Ok, fine. But if I don’t make it because my wingman wasn’t there to watch my back, I’m gonna haunt your ass.”

Amber had decided not to make a big deal out of leaving for the Gilding, and didn’t tell anybody else in town. Well, except for Ben. He tried to talk her out of it, bringing up the same points that Dane had a few nights earlier, but he ultimately relented, shaking his head and going on about her being a “stubborn Lancer”. The night before she left, Amber wrote a letter for Valerie. She had spent hours pouring over it, tossing out drafts that didn’t feel quite right, and didn’t stop until she had the perfect message. She had given it to Ben when she told him her plan, telling him not to read it and only give it to Valerie if she woke up while she was away. Or if the worst would come to pass. They shared a long, sincere embrace, and Ben wished her luck. Then ordered her to come back alive or he would drag her spirit back into her corpse so he could tan her hide.

Parents… sometimes Amber was glad she never had to put up with them.

Dane agreed to drive Amber to the Peacekeeper outpost that was responsible for overseeing the area. As the only real presence Aurum had, it was where anyone interested in undergoing the Gilding was supposed to report. But even that trip could be dangerous, as Peacekeepers have been known to be itchy when it comes to visitors to their bases.

Dane had idled Bertha outside of Pythe, the old van looked much worse for wear, with dents and skid marks all along the side where she had been run off the road just a few days prior. After a knock at the passenger side door, Amber heard it unlock and stepped inside. Dane was sitting in the driver’s seat, looking back at her before fastening his seat belt.

“You weren’t kidding, got her up and running.” Amber said, as Dane shifted into gear and made his way down the dirt road out of Pythe.

“Eh, it wasn’t too much work. Most of the damage was cosmetic, only really needed to realign the axles but that was it.” He said, as if it were no big deal.

“Never knew you were good with cars.” Amber said, looking out at the sunset as the sky became a mix of violet and dark blue hues.

“Oh yeah, not exactly a garage nearby that I can take this baby girl to if she needs repairs, I ended up buying a few books a while back. They were for some older models, but I learned enough from them. Well, that and trial and error.”

“That makes me feel safe.” Amber scoffed.

“Well, you never complained before.” Dane replied.

There was a silence for a while, as Dane drove and Amber looked out the window. She had told herself she would be getting a good night’s rest before today, but it never came. She couldn’t even shut her eyes as she sat in bed, reaching over and half expecting to feel Valerie there next to her. She hadn’t slept alone in such a long time, and there was no way she could pick it up so easily. Even on jobs, Dane was just a few feet away from her, or taking the night watch while she rested. Sleeping alone just gave her time to think about her guilt, and about her fears. Needless to say, it was a long night in bed.

Just over an hour before they even arrived at the Peacekeeper outpost, they heard the roaring of engines above them as one of their shuttles flew overhead. No doubt alerting the base to their approach. Soon after, they began to see warning signs of the road. They showed depictions of stick figures being shot, and warned that any suspicious activity will be met with lethal force. Amber had noticed that Dane had slowed down significantly.

“Shit, this don’t feel right.” He said, tapping his knuckles on the wheel of Bertha. “Driving towards PK’s…”

Amber had to agree, she had spent her whole life apprehensive of them, avoiding them like some hostile force of nature, and now they were knocking right at their front door.

The outpost soon came into view. The base was surrounded by high, chain link fencing tipped with coils of barbed wire. The gate at the front appeared to be the only way in and out, unless you could land an airship on the inside. And even if you had one of those, getting it passed the gunners stationed in the guard towers would be a challenge itself.

“Last chance, Amber. You sure you want to do this?” Dane asked, as he stopped the van in the road.

Amber took a deep breath, and shut her eyes. Giving it all one last thought. It was a gamble, she knew this, but sitting around idly while Valerie wasted away in bed seemed more terrifying than risking her life in the unknown. And if she died trying to right her wrong, at least there was the chance Valerie could join her soon.

“I’m sure.” She said, confident in her answer.

Their approach seemed to put the base on alert, as a group of soldiers stepped out of the front gate, blocking the entrance. As they approached, they kept their rifles pointed downwards, the closest thing to a welcome that they could expect. But as Dane slowly drove closer, they raised the firearms at them, the leader of the group holding his hand out in a stopping gesture. Speaking into the megaphone he had brought, he addressed the two:

“Step out of the vehicle, and keep your arms above your head!”

“No turning back now…” Dane muttered, slowly opening his door and holding out his hands. Amber followed suit, stepping out slowly with her hands in the air as they stood by the side of the van.

“Step forward. No sudden movements.” The soldier commanded. As Amber followed instructions, she couldn’t help but feel that the one issuing orders had something familiar about him.

“Hey, Dane, is that–“

“Well! If it ain’t the two scrap rats!” The soldier shouted as they stepped closer. Amber felt her brow twitch as the captain smirked, remembering how the smug goon had taken their salvage little over a week ago.

“If you’ve come back to make a complaint, I’m more than happy to refer you to my PR department.” He said, as two of his underlings stepped forward, batons drawn and ready for a pummeling.

“Not why I’m here.” Amber spat out, hoping to make her interactions with this man as brief as humanly possible. “I want a Gilding Trial.” Amber said, earning a few chuckles from the soldiers, until their commander held up his fist, commanding silence from them.

“Want to see the inside of Aurum, eh? Can’t say either of you would like it, or that you belong there.” He said, pacing in front of the duo and letting his words sink in. “But, it is not my position to decide which rats sign up for their little test, no matter how hopeless and utterly unfit they may be.” He snapped and gestured towards Bertha.

“Search the van for contraband, and take these two inside. Get them briefed.”

“Whoa! Hey! I’m just her ride!” Dane said, his sudden outburst earning a few rifles pointed in his direction. The captain stepped forward, his face just a few inches apart from Dane’s as he sneered.

“Search the van.” He said again, waiting for his soldiers to step inside Bertha. Only a moment later, one came out and handed the captain something wrapped in a bundle of fabric. He unwrapped it, finding heaps of red powder tied off in small plastic bags.

“Well, looks like we’ve got a smuggler.” He said, amused.

“You mother fucker, you planted that!” Dane shouted.

Amber could hear Dane swallow in fear, and his arm twitched, as if he had to force himself not to lash out at the officer in front of him.

“You know what the penalty for running this stuff is? Life sentence to labor in a water pump… I hear it’s nasty work, but a big guy like you? I’d say you last at least a decade. Longer than most of the rats I pick up.”

There was a long silence, as the captain let the tension linger.

“Of course, could overlook this whole nastiness if you decide to keep your friend company on her trials.”

“Dane, no, you weren’t–“

“Fine.” Dane snapped.

Amber opened her mouth to speak, but one look from Dane kept her silent. She wanted him to sign up with her, but not like this.

“Take them to holding.” The captain barked, two of his men stepping behind them. Amber yelped as she felt her arms forced behind her back, her wrists cuffed together as they were marched past the fence, and right into the hands of the Peacekeepers.