Katarina spent three days researching the Consortium and by the end of it she had filled eleven pages of notes, worn a groove in the study floor from pacing, and developed a specific, burning need to attend an academy she hadn't known existed seventy-two hours ago.
The Ledger was her primary source, but its information on Pavona was broad: structural data, economic indicators, institutional rankings. Good for framework, bad for texture.
For texture, she needed Seris.
"Tell me about Pavona," Katarina said, like the main character in a videogame, on the second evening, sitting across from her mother in the garden while the sun dropped behind the canyon rim.
Seris's wine glass paused halfway to her mouth. Her purple eyes went distant for a moment, and then she smiled and it passed.
"I lived there. Before I met your mother. Before a lot of things."
"What was it like?"
Seris took a sip and leaned back in her chair.
