"Wizard of Oz?"
"What are you on about, Mars?"
"Ugh, you really need to get in touch with some pop culture. It's one of the best things about Earth."
"If you say so."
"Okay, I'm taking this personal here, Bastien."
He chuckled. "I'm just giving you a hard time. Same as you give me." A silence fell between them.
"Mars?"
"I'm still here."
"You got so quiet I thought the call dropped."
"Who is she?" Mars asked.
"Who is who?"
"Your mate. I noticed a change in you for a while, but I chalked it up to the lack of war and new environment. Now I know there's more."
"Because I made a joke?"
"Yes."
Jesus, what kind of robot have I been all these years?
"Listen, it's not what you think," Bastien said.
"Then what is it like? I don't like secrets, Bast. They never amount to any good, especially one that's causing such a drastic change."
"I took The Purge when I was seventeen." The words were out of his mouth before he could think to stop them.
"I knew it! I've known plenty of soldiers in my time, and they party even harder than me. Everyone has their own way of dealing with things, but you have no vices. Not drinking, gambling, video games, nothing. It was unnatural even by Shar standards."
He could picture his brother's blue eyes blazing with excitement at the puzzle piece that had snapped into place.
"Did everyone suspect?"
"If they do they've never said anything," Mars said. It felt right having his baby brother know for some reason. They'd gotten close in the past year as Phelan, who he'd been closest to, drifted away as he courted
and married Zasha.
"Good. I want to keep this between us for as longs as I can manage."
"Sure—but why? I mean, isn't this a good thing?" Mars asked.
"It's complicated."
"Meaning I still don't know the whole story." Amusement peppered Mar's voice, and Bastien rolled his eyes.
"Yeap." A heartbeat passed.
"You're not going to enlighten me?" Mars asked.
"Not yet—soon I may be forced to." The thought of trying to court anyone without guidance sent him into a blind panic. Fate knew what it was doing when it appointed him the role of warrior, because he was shit with emotion.