Chapter 53: Silence
Contains spoilersOverview
Darrow interrogates a battered Antonia, who offers unverifiable intel on the Jackal’s Mars defenses. A broadcast shows the Jackal executing Uncle Narol, igniting Color-on-Color violence across the fleet. Darrow orders lockdowns and rushes back as Mustang reports casualties and a prison uprising led by Sefi that threatens Cassius.
Summary
After Mustang outlines her plan and departs to rejoin the fleet, Darrow remains aboard the Pandora with Victra and the Howlers to oversee repairs and interrogate Antonia. Brutalized by Victra, Antonia cooperates and claims the Jackal is consolidating around retaken Phobos, recalling ships and driving patrician refugees to Luna and Venus. With communications degraded, Darrow cannot verify the intel and suspects it may be a trap, a concern compounded by Thistle’s death.
Late ship-night, Holiday joins Darrow as he struggles to access Quicksilver’s dataDrop. The two share a quiet moment of grief—Holiday speaking of Trigg and his fiancé Ephraim—revealing her reluctance to be alone and her faith in Darrow’s leadership.
A fleetwide broadcast interrupts: the Jackal appears and executes Darrow’s Uncle Narol, captured sabotaging beacons. The timestamp shows it occurred three weeks prior. Darrow immediately understands the effect—Narol’s murder will inflame lowColors and fracture the fragile alliance with Golds.
Darrow orders the Howlers awakened, sets maximum thrust to rejoin the fleet, and directs Orion to seal bridges and isolate guns to prevent reprisals. Contacting Mustang, he learns the message has already spread to ship hubs, sparking violence: Reds have killed Golds on Persephone, and a Gold lieutenant shot two Obsidian. Mustang evacuates personnel but remains on the Morning Star to extract seven stranded Golds, refusing Daxo’s offer of Gold knights to avoid a full-scale melee.
As Darrow races back, Mustang reports the prison has been stormed, with Cassius likely to be executed. Darrow tells her to find Sefi—only to learn Sefi is leading the uprising, signaling a dangerous rupture in their coalition and an immediate internal crisis.
Who Appears
- Darrow
Interrogates Antonia, witnesses Narol’s execution, orders fleet lockdowns, and races back to quell factional violence.
- Mustang (Virginia au Augustus)
Coordinates evacuations on Morning Star, reports Color-on-Color killings, and reveals Sefi is leading a prison uprising targeting Cassius.
- Sefi the Quiet
Obsidian leader now spearheading the revolt, storming the prison and imperiling the alliance.
- Holiday ti Nakamura
Shares grief over Trigg, steadies Darrow on Pandora, and witnesses the incendiary broadcast.
- Antonia
Battered prisoner who provides dubious, unverifiable intel on the Jackal’s Mars preparations.
- The Jackal (Adrius au Augustus)
Broadcasts and executes Uncle Narol, deliberately inflaming lowColors and destabilizing Darrow’s coalition.
- Uncle Narol
Captured sabotaging beacons; executed on video, his death catalyzes violent reprisals across the fleet.
- Sevro au Barca
Howler leader who recognizes the alliance’s fracture and helps mobilize for Darrow’s return.
- Daxo Telemanus
Offers Gold guards to extract Mustang but stands down to avoid escalating bloodshed.
- Orion
Blue commander ordered to seal bridges and isolate ship weapons to prevent reprisals.
- Cassius au Bellona
Imprisoned Gold threatened by the uprising; faces imminent execution if the mob prevails.