The First Penitatas - Regicide
The hospital was in panic mode. Every surgeon, virologist, anesthetist and rejuvenation engineer was summoned to their station as facilities were swept clear by House Guards and Enforcers alike. The Lord Vaskal was raced through the hospital on a...
The First Penitatas - The Eye of the Storm
The only thing between Tosjig and the freezing void of space was a thin cockpit canopy, and try as he might to shut it out, his mind created constant phantom sounds of cracking glass. Stressed huffs escaped between his clenched, barred teeth as his...
The First Penitatas - The House of Penitence
For the first time since moving into his new home, Skal slept soundly. He knew he'd slept well because he woke to find Kadan had already risen and begun his day without ever stirring the six year old Kyyreni Penitatas. After a yawn, a stretch and...
The First Penitatas - A Day in the Sinking Light
The boys were tired and it showed. It wasn't their fault; the Sinking Light was only getting busier now that the Proud Greens had shuttered its doors for good. There were closer bars - one directly opposite, in fact - but the new influx were...
The First Penitatas - Ros' Transgression
Ros wasn't one to make demands of people, especially not his mistress, Ivaka. That's not to say Ros didn't have needs, it's just he kept them to himself. He tried to be proactive, attentive and hard-working on the basis that people respected those who...
The First Penitatas - Prospect Skal
There were times when the two Rejuves, Sam and Skal were able to act their chronological age, but that was exceedingly difficult when the subject of surgery reared its unwelcome head. Sam had caught a snippet of Kadan's discussion on a call...
The First Penitatas - Broken Trust
Hafn awoke with a pressure on his chest and a cold, sticky dampness creeping across his left pectoral. With a groan he tried to sit up, only to find himself pinned in place by Ros. The Kyyreni boy gave a frustrated grunt and shoved his fellow...
The First Penitatas - Bonds of Friendship and Family
The Birthing was a fortnight away, but it may as well have started as far as everyone else in the City was concerned. The happy, celebratory mood of the wider world served only to drive Skal further into his own misery, and under pressure sadness had a...
The First Penitatas - A Moment Shared
Curled up in his master's bed, Skal was briefly awoken at an ungodly hour before shuffling into the warm depression left behind as Kadan got up and prepared for the day. The five year old rejuve was soon back into a deep slumber, and remained that way...
The First Penitatas - Out of the Pit
Lord Governor Wokun studied the broken child in the cell with cold, dispassionate eyes. It was not that he was cruel by nature, although his upbringing did reward aggressive, confrontational behaviour. In this case his lack of care was personal, born...
The First Penitatas - The Pillory
There had been no breakfast for Skal that morning. He was given a little water and a chance to relieve himself, but it was made clear he'd get little relief until the evening. He dressed smartly for his own sake, wishing to preserve what little dignity...
The First Penitatas - The Fallout
After what felt like an eternity, the Penitatas of Class 1 were slowly making their way back to school. Skal was early; so early, in fact, that he'd been forced to stand in the cold for ten minutes until the teacher arrived to unlock the building. He...