From the observation deck in her quarters, Jade watched the Jewel steer deeper inside the cavernous astroport.

The vessel’s sails and lateral wings swelled, catching the first breeze in more than two months. After looking at nothing but dark, bottomless space and faraway stars for the longest time, the hustle and bustle of Belarus’s main hub made for a nice diversion. Unimaginatively called Last Harbor, the place occupied the excavated interior of a mountain and served as the last stop to refuel and do some shopping for the ships bound to the Rim Sector.

Blue lights and whistles served as directional aids for the less skilled pilots who kept bumping against the safety buoys and slowed the entrance line to a crawl. Jade didn’t mind the wait. Once she stepped out of the Jewel, her life would forever change.

Several meters below the Jewel’s deck, Belters and newly-arrived settlers navigated the floating bridges with unsteady feet, looking for a lift that would take them to their final destinations. The rough-looking humanity filled a space already crowded with slim fretters and bulky cargo liners. Belarus orbited at the edge of the Outer Belts, its remote position a sought-after destination for anyone who wanted to disappear or start a new life.

During the entire voyage, Jade tormented herself about a life she could never have with Dragon, and finally came to the conclusion that she needed a fresh start, and to achieve what most assassins would never contemplate, she would assume a new identity. Hiding and changing her name wouldn’t be enough, though. Her rank of Master Assassin asked for extreme measures, and it was the reason Jade had wanted to reach Belarus.

“Lady Jade,” Captain Durant called from the gramophone. “We’ve received the confirmation code from the port, and we’ll be docking in less than an hour.”

Jade looked around at her surroundings. It didn’t matter that she had left Dragon on Solaria. Everywhere she looked, she could see him. When she closed her eyes, he would appear with his ready smile. How many times had she fallen asleep only to wake up in tears because she dreamed of him? The ghosts of his kisses still lingered on her skin. Two months hadn’t lessened her longing for him. If anything, her sentiments had grown stronger. She couldn’t live with his memories forever haunting her.

Fortunately for her, she wouldn’t have to.

* * *

Two hours later, Jade climbed down the Jewel as if she were going to take a stroll through Belarus City. She let Captain Durant believe she would come back to the ship for the next leg of her voyage and left with a mere, “See you later.”

Once she stepped on the suspended bridge that led out of the spaceport and into the glass dome protecting the city proper, Jade looked back for a last glance at the Jewel. Her ship.

When the captain explained to her that the High Lord had gifted her the vessel, her heart had shuttered anew. Even from afar, Dragon kept taking care of her needs. But if she wanted her plan to be successful, she couldn’t keep the Jewel, and with great anguish, she turned and walked away. Every step she took, warm tears wetted her cheeks. Jade didn’t wipe them away, though, but let them fall because she needed to mourn her loss.

For hours, she roamed street after street through Belarus City. Her original plan was to give the impression she was one of the many space travelers on a layover, waiting for the next shuttle to cart them off the planet. But even if that hadn’t been her intention, she wouldn’t have hurried to her destination: Vivaldi & Sons.

Once she entered the medicus’ office, her problems would be fixed. And this slow agony that tore her whole being in too many pieces would be gone.

She would be rid of Dragon.

But as she wandered through the seedier part of an already seedy outpost at the edge of the Outer Belts, Jade’s resolution balked. The pain in her heart had become a familiar ache that kept her company for the last two months.

To fortify her resolve, she entered a dive bar for a drink, eager to drown her sorrow in a pint or two of the fiery concoctions Belarus was infamous for. The clientele recoiled at her sight as soon as she stepped inside the dim locale. If she weren’t so damned depressed, Jade would have laughed. Finally, someone showed her some respect. It was the scum of the interstellar trade that bowed to her Master Assassin’s status, but she wouldn’t complain. After being treated like a harmless female by Dragon and his friends first, and later by Captain Durant and the Jewel’s crew who never forgot to call her Lady Jade, it was a refreshing change.

“We don’t want any problems,” the bulky bartender said, his gaze hard and speculating.

Under the glass dome of Belarus City, stores and establishments catered to a wild clientele. The bar Jade chose sported an even edgier side to it, judging from the patrons assembled by the long counter. Yet those men and women opened a wide path as Jade passed.

“I’m not looking for any.” Jade hopped on the barstool and pressed a coin against the opaque surface of the counter.

Judging from the corrugated, galvanized walls and the flying cables, the bar had once been a container, one of those large rectangular boxes attached outside cargo ships. Recycling and repurposing made up the entire architectural effort on outpost planets, and Belarus had elevated the practice to an art of sorts. The flickering lights haphazardly draping the rusted mirror glass behind the counter added a wishful note to the place.

Long beards, vape pipes drooping from scarred mouths, and a general sense of foreboding surrounded most of the male customers. For the women, too much makeup and the sharp glint of greed suggested lives spent fulfilling someone else’s physical needs.

There were exceptions. A couple of tourists sat at one of the small booths crammed against the battered wall. Their tailored clothes and elaborate hairstyles gave them away as rich people from Celestia. It was the latest fashion for wealthy travelers to get a taste of the raw sensuality of the Belts. Jade would never understand what passed through the minds of those lucky individuals. People born with everything seemed more prone to throw away fortunes—and sometimes their lives, too—for the thrill of danger.

“What’s your poison?” the bartender asked Jade.

She rolled her eyes at the cliché. “Blue Absinthe. Pure,” she said to challenge him.

The bartender said something under his breath that sounded a lot like, “Of course,” but immediately turned and bent to reach for a dusty bottle of the spirit he slammed on the counter a moment later. “Last one.”

It was probably the only one this dive had ever owned since its inception.

“Duly impressed.” Jade tilted her head at the bartender.

“You are not the only with expensive tastes visiting Belarus.” The man opened the bottle with his metal teeth. He was showing off for the assassin. How cute.

Once, before Dragon ever entered her life, Jade would have been open to the man’s flirting. He looked clean and eager enough. A few minutes in the shade of the container would have sufficed to satisfy her.

“Thank you,” she snatched the bottle from the man’s hand. As she brought the absinthe to her mouth, she avoided the bartender’s gaze and stared ahead at the hazy mirror instead.

With nothing else to do but look, she noted the rich woman sitting with her back too straight against the plastic booth. The dim lighting and the murky reflective surface hid details, but Jade watched as the man’s hand reached for his companion’s knee under the table and gently squeezed. The woman immediately relaxed, and a large smile brightened her pretty face.

It was but a small gesture. And yet, that insignificant show of affection soothed the woman’s nervousness, and it drove an arrow through Jade’s chest.

Without tasting a drop of the fiery alcohol, Jade dropped the bottle and stumbled outside, trying to reach the dark alley before she would weep inside the bar.

Plans change. Assassins adapt.

Or ran away to cry their heart out. Or find the first medicus willing to perform illegal, unsanctioned practices for the right amount of money. Whichever came first.

The look of trust on that woman’s face, the joy she couldn’t hide at her companion’s touch, reminded Jade that she would never experience such small pleasures ever again. Unless she erased Dragon from inside of her.

The city lights had dimmed to the night cycle’s settings, and her legs ached by the time she finally reached the edge of the dome. Very few ventured into the Badlands during the day cycle, but Jade wasn’t worried. The white marks etched on her naked arms and coiling around her eye protected her more than a personal shield. When choosing her outfit for today’s foray, she had elected a sleeveless vest to better showcase her Master Assassin status. No Belters in their right minds would approach her. Not even in the Badlands.

Whereas containers and leftovers from interstellar business made up the bulk of the construction anywhere else in the city, here scraps of metals and rubbish had been used to build rickety shacks. The sturdier of the ramblers looked likely to collapse if one so much as breathed too hard nearby.

Remembering her previous jaunt to the Badlands, Jade followed a path made of broken glass and electrical cords. As she walked further inside Belarus City’s outskirts, fabric screens replaced doors on corrugated cardboard walls. Whispers followed her, but she didn’t see anyone. Still, she knew that her presence would be announced to the right person.

When she finally stopped outside a squat building made of reinforced cardboard, the faded curtain was swept by the side, and a tall man exited.

“Master Assassin,” the man said, slightly tilting his head in recognition. “We meet again.” He moved to the side to let her in.

“Medicus.” Jade hesitated only for a moment before following him inside.

“What can Vivaldi & Sons do for you today?”

“An erasion. Strike the last two and a half months from my mind.”