The waiting was killing all of them.
Though they understood why they'd done so, the retreat from Castellot still galled many of the Unmarked, though for many that frustration had turned to fear at the attack that had cost them one of their buses. That fear had only grown since they'd reached Hollow Shades and found themselves all but besieged by the local Nocturnes, forced to keep watch, drive off the occasional raid, and worst of all have to deal with their eyes just watching, staring at them from the shadows like ghosts. The magic-user attack that had claimed Caramel and Lime Twist had pushed many of his fellow Equals to the breaking point, jumping at shadows and barely able to sleep. He'd been forced to turn a blind eye to the unequal relationship between Sugar Belle and Party Favor, reasoning that he could put a stop to it later after Party Favor had managed to stop her from waking up screaming every few hours. He understood why Starlight disliked it, even in its most benign form hierarchicalism was still a cancer, but operating on it now would only serve to hurt the patient he wished to heal. Equalism would be able to reassert itself once it was established, but it needed to survive in order to be established.
And the waiting was making that more and more unlikely.
Lion Heart fretted about what her former siblings-in-arms would do to her if they caught her. Night Glider was champing at the bit to find whoever or whatever had taken Caramel and Lime Twist. Offbeat had just managed to talk Feather Bangs out of running away and taking his chances with the Nocturnes. Even Party Favor, one of the truest Equals Double Diamond knew, was beginning to waver, his laughter routinely trailing off with a nervous glance in the direction of their enemies. The Unmarked were tearing themselves apart.
And, infuriatingly, Starlight seemed to be doing nothing about it.
He found her where she spent most of her time now, with the captured hierarchs, calmly reading from one of their confiscated books. He shivered at the sight of its bloodstained pages; knowing one's enemy was important, but did they really have to sink to the depths of their enemies to gain that knowledge? To study the enemy's arts so deeply risked turning them into the enemy. The dominant were not their enemies because of who they were or who they were dominating, they were their enemies because they dominated anyone. Starlight had her reasons for studying it, he knew, but if he were in her place he would read only as much as he needed to understand how to neutralize the hierarchs' ability to dominate before burning the wretched thing.
She marked her place, then closed the book and turned to look at him. "Yes, Double Diamond? Is there something you need me for?"
"Starlight," he replied, snapping to attention, "the others are getting anxious. I've tried to help them, but they need you." He took a deep breath, gathered as much sincerity as he could, then gave it voice. "They need to see and hear the woman who brought them together, who dared to speak out about the dangers of magic when the government was silent, who took them to Castellot to smash the hierarchy. Starlight, please; if we don't do something soon, I'm afraid the Unmarked will fall apart. Remind them why they're here, why they joined the Unmarked in the first place. You lit the fire that brought us here; please, don't let it go out."
Starlight looked back at him, her gaze inscrutable, before eventually shrugging and putting the book on a nearby table. "Thank you for telling me this, Double Diamond," she smiled reassuringly at him, almost driving him to his knees in relief, "Trust me, I want our flame to flicker out as much as you do. And if the Unmarked need me to keep that fire going - well, I've given them this much. What's a little more? Call a general meeting; I want to reach as many of the Unmarked as I can. But leave the sentries on watch; the others might need reassurance, but they also need warning when the elites make their move."
"I'll let them know," he nodded eagerly. "Bye, Starlight."
"Bye," she replied, before snapping her fingers as he turned to leave. "Oh! One last thing. I was speaking with the counterrevolutionaries," she gestured at the bound, hooded figures surrounding her, "and one of them actually volunteered to, how did we agree to put it... ah, right, stand beside us when we meet Captain Armor."
Double Diamond's blood ran chill. "Are," he hesitantly asked, "are we still planning to do that?"
"We've been over this, Double Diamond," Starlight sighed. "The hierarchicalists need to see how the hierarchy can't protect them. We need to show them that rank means nothing, whether that rank is social, political, economic, or magical."
"And capturing them doesn't?" he asked. "Look at them; what further proof do we need that hierarchicalism is a failure?"
"You don't know the elite like I do, Double Diamond," Starlight shook her head. "They'll ignore the evidence right in front of their face if it's convenient for them. We need to show them something undeniable, something no amount of bureaucracy or public relations can hide."
"They could still hide it under the cover of hatred," he countered, "say that what happened wasn't proof of hierarchicalism's failure but of equalism's brutality."
"And they wouldn't say the same of the captives?" Starlight raised a brow.
He flinched.
"We can't assume good faith on the part of the elite, Double Diamond," she continued. "If we were to return to Castellot by walking across Lake Canter, they would say that proves we can't swim. They'll keep their eyes and ears closed to the truth unless we force them open, and merely capturing the hierarchicalists isn't enough to do so. We need to show them the truth in a way they can't talk their way around, can't dismiss or reinterpret. We need to force them to see the light, and who better to do so than one of their own?" Her brow furrowed. "Why so reluctant, Double Diamond? You've been so faithful elsewhere, why do you doubt me now?"
"It," he lamely replied, "it doesn't feel right. We're better than this, better than-"
"Are we?" her brow arched. "I don't recall you being this weak-willed in supporting the revolution when it required the creation of the Office of Security, or when we captured Guilden. Remind me, who was it who came up with the idea of more frequent, rotating lessons in reeducation?"
The Groverian frantically babbling as he was awakened for a midnight lesson. "Me, but-"
"Who was it who took such an interest in reeducating the magic-user from Crystal City?"
Adagio's shrill screams as he poured the kettle.
"And, of course, who was it who saw to the counterrevolutionary's punishment for attempting to escape, personally?"
Crack. Crack. "What's the point of this, Starlight?" Double Diamond asked, wiping the unexpected shame from his eyes. "What's the point of listing my contributions to the revolution?"
"To show you that you don't need to worry," she soothed, walking over to gently brush away his tears. "Extremism is no vice in service of the revolution, and your record shows it. You knew that, whatever you did, however wrong it might have felt, was worth it if it supported the revolution. This is just one more chance to learn that, to demonstrate your devotion to Equalism." She gently kissed his forehead, as if he were a child, and whispered, "And I know you'll do me proud. Now go, call the others; it sounds like you aren't the only one I need to reassure."
He should have felt reassured after that, after receiving such sweet consolation from her, but all he felt was a hollow dread. "Just one more chance," he thought as he left, One more task, one more challenge, one more log for the fire. Starlight's right, I've already come this far, so why am I reluctant to continue? What else could I even do? Turn back? Run away? No, I have to see the revolution through. I've made my choice, and I can't take it back.
For a moment, his unease sapped his discipline, and he felt regret.
