The Defiant

Unfortunately, before we could put it all behind us, we actually had to do it. It was demoralizing to think that everything we’d been through up to now was just buildup for the actual mission.

So I didn’t think of it like that. Instead of the climax of our mission, which if we failed could mean the ends of our lives as we knew them, it was just the final hurdle in a long run.

Our ‘final hurdle’ began two hours before the actual ball, when I stood in front of the Crimson Room wardrobe, wiping my sweaty palms on the sides of my pants and staring in horror at the deep red satin monstrosity that hung inside.

I hadn’t really seen the dress in its entirety, since Rafaela’s valise had been unexpectedly deep, leading me to believe that while abundant, the skirt was something I would be able to manage. Even when I was getting ready to come down to Cebos, I had been more occupied with making it fit with Rafaela’s other dresses in the much-too-small travel bag to notice its size.

Now faced with the prospect of wearing it, I found myself wishing I were one of the boys. Better to stand stock-still and do nothing all night than be forced to walk around in this and not trip.

I sighed resignedly and slipped out of my pants and tank top and into the underdress Rafaela had packed. She was a bit smaller than me in the bust and hips, so the shift fit a bit more snugly than I would have liked it to, but it wasn’t as bad as the corset, which I would have to lace up considerably tighter than everyday use to fit into the ballgown.

I laced up the corset, which left me uncomfortably short of breath, and slipped the hoopskirt on. I took the dress down from the hanger and unlaced the back, then tugged it on over the undergarments. Contorting my arms awkwardly, I laced up the ribbons and knotted them at the back, then paused to catch my breath. Assuming I actually managed to escape Cebos in this thing, I would probably have to cut myself out of it.

Once again, I cursed the Eranians’ archaic mode of dress. There was a reason we had abandoned the hoopskirt as an everyday clothing item.

I turned around and regarded myself in the ornate mirror on the wall.

I had to admit, I looked pretty good. The dress narrowed my waist, and the off-the-shoulder long sleeves were considerably roomier than they appeared. The neckline emphasized my neck and collarbones, and brought out the warmth in my hair and eyes.

I admired myself for a moment more, then snapped back to the present and hunted for shoes. It occurred to me that I probably should have put them on before the dress, as it took me several minutes to wrestle the dress fabric out of the way to find my feet. The skirt was over seven feet in diameter! The shoes were thin silk slippers, which I noted regretfully would not offer much protection if I needed to make a fast escape. I took my comm from the pocket of the dress I’d worn yesterday and slipped it into my reticule.

Now embarrassingly winded, I returned to the parlor to find someone to do my hair. It was empty, but I knocked on the door to the Sapphire Room.

“Come in,” Three called from inside.

“Hey Three, can you put my hair up?” I asked, coming in and shutting the door behind me.

“Oh, One, it’s you,” Three said, sticking her head out of the bathroom. “Yeah, sure.” She waltzed out of the bathroom in a stunning cerulean dress that brought out her dark hair and emphasized her brown eyes and the smoothness of her skin. I immediately felt small and ugly in comparison to her.

“Of course it’s me? Who did you think it was?”

“No one.” She blushed. “Go on, sit at the vanity. I love your dress, by the way. I’m not sure blue’s my color.”

“Are you kidding? You look great,” I reassured her, plopping down on the vanity bench, smoothing my skirt down irritatedly when the hoop skirt popped up.

“What do you want me to do to it?” Three asked, grabbing a brush and a handful of pins from the vanity.

“I don’t really care. Just get it out of my face,” I said.

Three was a far less gentle hairstylist than Seven, but she certainly whipped my hair into shape quickly and efficiently, styling my boring brown locks into a updo of sophisticated curls.

She then grabbed a makeup kit from the vanity counter and applied a layer of foundation and eyeliner before I could even think to protest.

“Three, don’t you think—”

“Just let me finish. If you don’t like it when I’m done, I’ll get it off you. But you will.”

“How much of a chance do you think we have of actually pulling this thing off?” I asked, as she swiped a brush over my closed eyelids.

“I’m not sure. What really worries me is that we have no idea what we’re up against. You’d think the Aerzhu would have provided us with more information. There.”

I opened my eyes.

“Wow. How’d you do that?” I asked, raising a hand to my face. Three slapped it away.

“Uh uh. You can look, but no touching.”

She’d completely concealed my scar and made my eyes and lips pop. I looked like a years-older, more beautiful version of myself.

Three pushed me over, leaning into the mirror to make up her own face, though I didn’t see anything wrong with it. A minute later, she clucked happily and dropped the makeup kit to the floor, twisting her hair up into an impossibly elegant topknot.

“Should we go see if Four needs any help?” I asked.

“Nah, Seven’s going to. Lucky thing is too young to wear a corset. I’m not loving this Eranian fashion,” Three complained, smoothing a wrinkle from her skirt.

“That makes two of us,” I agreed.

“Well, I think that’s quite enough girl time for the day. Let’s go see if anyone else is ready. I think it’s almost time to go.” Three pounced to her feet and gracefully exited the room, leaving me to struggle up from the bench and head out to the parlor alone.

As we left the Sapphire Room, Five wolf-whistled from a chair by the door.

“Damn. I wish you would dress like that all the time,” he said to us. Three chucked a pillow at him, but I could tell she was pleased.

“Six and Two out in the hall?” I asked.

“Keeping watch for Monique,” he confirmed.

Just then, Eight exited the Orchid room wearing a dark amethyst gown and a frown, which softened to something resembling a smile when she saw Five.

“You two are the only ones ready to go?” she asked.

“Hey, what about me?” Five said, pretending to be offended. “It takes a long time to look this beautiful. A bit of appreciation would be welcome.”

I snorted loudly. He mock-glared at me.

Two knocked, then opened the door, and Five ducked hurriedly behind the back of the chair.

“Monique’s here, Your Highnesses,” he said in an artificially deep,formal voice, “Are you ready to go?”

“One moment, please,” I said equally formally. He shut the door. “Three, would you go see if Seven and Four are ready?”

She sighed and rolled her eyes dramatically, then crossed to the doorway of the Ivory Room. She raised her hand to knock, but the door swung open before she could.

Four flounced out in emerald silk, which contrasted sharply with her vibrant red hair, creating a pleasing effect.

She was followed by Seven, who looked gorgeous, practically angelic in a cream dress. Her brown curls were arrayed artfully around her head, tendrils falling to grace the curve of her neck. She spotted me and beamed brilliantly, bouncing over to join Three and I.

“You look great,” she gushed. “Say what you will about the Aerzhu, but they sure have fashion sense.” She did a little spin to demonstrate, the light catching off the shimmery folds of her dress.

“Enough chit chat. Let’s go do this,” Eight said abruptly, crossing to the door and yanking it open. Five dove down again, and I sniggered before schooling my face into a straight expression.

We filed out of the room, Monique at the head of the procession, and headed to the ball.

The swishing of satin skirts echoed in the silent hallway. Walking just in front of our ‘guards,’ who took up the rear, I watched the others ahead of me and shivered.

I knew now why the colors of the gowns had struck me as odd before. We wore the colors of the rooms we’d been assigned. Seven with her cream gown, had been placed in the Ivory Room. Four in emerald and Jade. Crimson and scarlet for me; cerulean and Sapphire for Three; Orchid and amethyst for Eight.

Our ball gowns had been in the Eranian royalties’ possession since the start of the mission. Which meant the colors were either the world’s biggest coincidence…

Or Milonakis or someone on his staff was in league with our kidnappers.