The Aphaian’s feathers bristled as he spoke. “The reports have come back on the weapons used in the monastery massacres. Our sources have confirmed that the weapons originated in the Carristoux system. It’s believed that they were developed by an anti-Yasta group.” There were muttering whispers and gasps from the rest of the representatives. “Yes, yes, that’s right. The attacks were orchestrated by none other than the Carbonari!”
One of the Josti raised her fists. “We must strike back at them! This can only be considered as an act of war! I say we attack Carristoux, and squash the Carbonari beneath our boots!” A chorus of agreement rang out from the other members.
The Aphaian held up his hands to silence them. “We must not do anything reckless! This group must be a large organization to carry out such an attack. We are not strong enough to attempt retaliation on our own. I want justice just like all of you, but we must handle it carefully. No doubt you have heard whispers about them.”
“Sir,” the representative from Verbash spoke up, “most of those stories are merely that: stories! Parents tell their children about the Carbonari to get them to behave. There is no fact behind them. You can’t possibly use that as justification for going to war with them.”
Peering down his beak, the leader focused his attention on the light green man in the ring of lower seats. “Nial, I know your sister was involved with the Carbonari. Since you’re so quick to jump to their aid, please, tell the gathered representatives what happened to her!”
Nial’s skin blotched with darker shades of green. He lowered his eyes, but answered anyway. “Naia was burned alive, but—”
“Burned alive!” The Aphaian talked over him. “She faced the most gruesome death known to the people of Verbash, and you still wish to defend the Carbonari? We should have asked the emperor to support our call to war when the massacre first happened! With his support, we would be sure to stamp them out.”
Nial’s sharp chin jutted upwards. “Prime Minister Alegro, there is no proof that the Carbonari were behind that! Naia said they always treated her with great respect!”
Alegro flared out the feathers on his head. “Is it not possible that they lured her in and then murdered her once her defenses were down? The new Five Yasta Brother Field Marshals haven’t even been appointed yet! Ashes of our religious Brothers Superior are still being cast into the wind on the tops of the mountains. The group that did this has no home in Batumah’s golden light. We must strike back at them, or be labeled as weak!”
Cherish untied herself from the rope that connected her to Fabois and Makka. She hissed to them, “Now!”
The invisibility fell away, leaving the three of them exposed. Cherish stood up tall. The gathered representatives screamed as the uninvited guests appeared out of thin air in front of them. Guards rushed forward to surround them. With a circle of infintium blades at their necks, Cherish locked eyes with Alegro.
Fabois held Makka’s hand, and glanced at Cherish. “Was this part of your plan?”
Still not taking her eyes off of Alegro, Cherish felt one of the blades press into the soft flesh on her neck. She swallowed hard. “Not exactly, no.”
Five
Coughing, Theo came to in a holding cell. His lungs ached and his head was pounding. A bio-light glowed dimly from outside the cell. Cierra was starting to wake up. She sat up too quickly, and almost passed out again. Theo instinctively reached out, and pulled her closer to him. Her head lolled on his shoulder. Jaedo groaned, and slowly turned his head to see them. The cell was dark and cold. The musty smell made Theo think of the dungeon back at the monastery. The guards had taken their supplies and infintium blades. By some stroke of luck, Theo and Jaedo had managed to keep their lasana blades hidden.
Holding Cierra’s head against him, Theo looked her over quickly. “Are you okay? Did they hurt you?”
She started to shake her head, then winced. “No, I’m fine. I just feel like I have a really bad hangover. What was that stuff anyway?”
Theo channeled his healing through his hands, and stroked her hair. He felt her relax into him as her headache faded. Still caressing her hair with one hand, he let his other rest limply on his knee. “I don’t know. Maybe Makram designed a gas to knock us out. After his last encounter with you guys being invisible, maybe he thought that knocking out someone with a Yasta gift would help level the playing field. It’s kind of hard to stay invisible when you’re unconscious.”
Jaedo cracked his knuckles. “There’s no honor in fighting like that. A real man would have gone blade to blade!”
Focusing on healing himself after Cierra was taken care of, Theo considered what the Josti had just said. “I don’t know if I agree with that. If we had a weapon that would do the same to Makram or any of the imperials, I wouldn’t even think twice about using it.”
Cierra sighed. Even though she was feeling better, she didn’t move her head away from Theo’s shoulder. Her breath tickled his neck and sent goosebumps down his arms. She traced her finger along the hand Theo was resting on his knee. “Now what are we going to do?”
Trying to calm his racing heart, Theo took a deep breath. “I still have one weapon up my sleeve…well, leg, I guess.” He shifted to show her the leg that was still encasing the lasana blade.
Jaedo held up his hand to shush them. “Someone’s coming.”
Theo’s eyes widened. “Quick, lie back down.”
The three of them pretended to be unconscious, as an officer and two militiamen approached the cell. The officer tapped the hilt of his sword on the bars. “Wake up!” No one inside the cell moved. The officer grumbled, and fumbled some keys off of a hook on his belt. “Make a note to tell Prince Makramis that the ratios of the last batch were very effective. They’re still out cold.”
One of the militiamen nodded. “Yes, sir.” He watched as the officer slipped a key into the lock on the cell and opened it. “Sir, are you sure you should be doing that?”
“Have you tried supporting a wife and three kids on an officer’s salary? I just want to see if they have anything of value on them that the others missed. One of the kids has a birthday coming up. A rebel souvenir would make a great present.”
He stepped inside the cell, and knelt down next to Theo. The officer started patting down Theo’s pockets. With one quick movement, Theo drove his palm into the officer’s nose. A few quick punches, and he was unconscious on the cell floor before his two subordinates could wedge themselves into the cell after him. One of them started to lunge at Theo, but one sweep of Cierra’s legs sent him toppling. Theo drove his knee into one of the militiamen’s heads. He threw the other one into the bars. In all the shuffling, Jaedo got one of them in a headlock. He squeezed the man’s neck until he passed out. The other guard was caught up in a flurry of Theo’s punches. In a moment, all of the imperials were out cold.
Theo’s eyes lit up, as a plan formed. “Quick, strip them down.”
“What?” Cierra looked at him, a little confused.
Tugging off the officer’s uniform, Theo started trading out clothing. “We can go disguised as them. The imperials won’t look at us twice if we blend in.”
The three of them changed into the uniforms at their disposal. Jaedo wriggled his second set of arms uncomfortably. “I don’t like this. It makes me feel trapped.”
Theo squinted at the Josti. He snapped his fingers, as an idea came to him. “Do you think you can make yourself look human?”
Jaedo paused for a moment. His second set of arms blended seamlessly into his sides. “How’s that?”
Cierra grimaced a little. “Do you think you could make yourself a little less…green?”
Wrinkling his forehead in concentration, Jaedo focused on his appearance again. “How’s about now? Is that good?”
“Uhh…” Cierra looked to Theo for assistance.
Theo buttoned up the shirt he had taken from the officer. “Well, you kind of just made your face flat instead of changing your skin color.”
Theo patted his arm. “Maybe just try to stay in the shadows, and don’t draw too much attention to yourself.”
Cierra tucked her hair up into the cap the of the militiaman she was replacing. “What about you, Theo?”
Smiling, Theo took a hard look at the officer. His face morphed and changed. He became a reflection of the unconscious man at his feet. “Me? I’m just an ordinary officer. Come on. Let’s get to those descent pods. I have a feeling we need to see what’s going on in those labs down there. If Makram is having the imperials make some kind of gas bombs, there’s no telling what else he has in store for us.” He checked the blaster he had gotten off the officer. It was fully charged. He nodded towards Jaedo to check the one on his hip.
“Mine’s good to go, too.”
Cierra glanced around the cell. “My guard didn’t have a blaster. He only had his blade.”
Theo placed his hands on her shoulders. “Just stay behind me, okay? I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
She nodded. Her cheeks were tinted with a soft pink. “I believe you.”
Straightening his posture, Theo swung the cell door open further. “Let’s go.”
The three of them walked at a brisk pace towards the center shaft. They passed a few more officers. Theo acknowledged them with a nod. It seemed satisfactory enough. No one stopped them. Just as they rounded the corner to where the descent pods were waiting, a familiar voice made Theo’s blood run cold. He froze.
Makram was talking loudly to someone he was walking with. “See? I told you putting up that facial recognition scanner would pay off. After we saw him doing that recon mission, I knew he would be back.”
Karl cleared his throat. “Don’t get ahead of yourself, little brother. If there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that those Carbonari are like cockroaches. No matter how many times we try to kill them, they just keep coming back. Especially that young pup you have it out for.”
Prince Makramis let out an unamused laugh. “I can’t wait to see his face when he sees what I have in store for him.” Theo tensed up.
Raising an eyebrow, Karl glanced at Makram. “Care to share with the class?”
“I have his woman.”
Karl spat on the ground. “That little rebel you were teamed up with? Big deal. Reports say she was captured with him earlier.”
“No.” Makram’s eyes glistened maliciously. “I have his wife.”
For a small second, Theo hoped that Cierra hadn’t heard them, but the look on her face told him that she had. Her eyes were wide, as she looked at him. Her voice was a small whisper. “Mari’s alive?”
Theo knew there was no keeping it from her now. He tried to reach out for her. “Cierra, I—”
She staggered away from him, jerking her arm away. “You knew…” The realization sank in. Tears welled up in her eyes, and her chest felt like it was going to be crushed. “You knew! You knew she was alive, and you didn’t tell me! I actually thought that you cared about me. How stupid could I be?”
The pain in her eyes pierced Theo’s heart. He tried to move towards her, but she shook her head violently. “Cierra, please—”
Their conversation was interrupted by Makram coming into view. “Officer Perrault, I thought you were going to check on the prisoners. Where are they?” Makram’s eyes narrowed at Theo.
Realizing that Perrault must have been the man who’s face he was wearing, Theo gritted his teeth. He fought against the part of him that wanted to kill Makram on sight. They needed to know more about the weapons the empire was developing, and the truth was he still didn’t know where Mari was being held. Holding himself together, Theo tried to remember what the officer had said when he came for them. “They’re still unconscious in the cell. The new gas ratios worked really well.”
Makram’s hand rested on his blaster. He passed his eyes over Theo’s companions. Cierra was desperately trying not to break down. Her head was tilted so that the brim of her hat blocked most of her face. Jaedo was trying to stay in the shadows. He was piecing together what was being said, realizing for the first time that Cierra and Theo were not really married, and that apparently Theo’s real wife was a prisoner of the empire.
An alarm blared. A shout rang out from back towards the cell. One of the guards must have woken up. “They escaped! The prisoners escaped!”
Makram pulled his blaster out of its holster. “I thought there was something off about you.”
Soldiers rushed down the hall towards them. Blasters sent plasma bursts towards them. One of the soldiers yelled above the fire, “Protect the princes!”
More guards came from the other end of the hall. There wasn’t a descent pod in the tube. They were trapped. Theo ducked, to dodge an incoming plasma burst. He fired through the guards, trying to hit Makram or Karl. It was one thing trying not to kill them when there was still hope for a successful mission. Now, that chance was gone. His new plan was to take out as many imperials as he could.
A blaster hit the wall leading to the pod shaft, leaving behind a gaping, black hole. From the corner of his eye, Theo saw something move. He turned just in time to see Cierra stumble over a chunk of wall that had crashed behind her. She was backing up to give him more space to maneuver, but lost her balance. Her eyes widened in fear, arms flailing out beside her, desperately searching for something to grab onto, but there was nothing. Her body plummeted into the dark nothingness of the shaft.
Six
Alegro pounded his fist into the podium. “How dare you show up here unannounced! This is a sacred place! Take them away!”
“Wait!” Cherish’s voice echoed around the cave. “You don’t want to do that.”
A throaty, offended noise came from the Aphaian on the center seat. “You dare to tell me what I do and do not want to do?”
The blades around Cherish’s throat moved closer. A thin trail of blood snaked down from one of the points that nicked her. “Prime Minister, I only meant that you should listen to what I have to say.”
He ruffled his feathers, and turned his head away from her. “Why would I listen to someone that intruded on our meeting? What could you possibly say that would affect this council?”
“Because I was there!”
Alegro clicked his beak at her. “There? There where?”
Cherish took a deep breath. “I was at the Kinyah monastery when it was attacked.”
A muttering whisper spread through the representatives. Alegro leaned forward, intrigued. He motioned for the guards to step back a little, but they still had their blades aimed at Cherish, Makka, and Fabois. The Prime Minister steepled his rough, feathered fingers. “Go on.”
Everyone’s focus was on Cherish. She took a second to organize her thoughts. “I was an acolyte at the monastery when it was attacked. My friends here were at one of the other monasteries when the attack happened. We all managed to escape. The attack didn’t come from the Carbonari. It was the imperial forces. They were behind the attack. They wanted to eliminate all traces of the Yasta leadership.”
The council erupted in dismay and dissent. From the cacophony, Cherish could only catch snippets of conversation. Most of the council was in denial that the emperor would allow or condone an attack on his own people. Others voiced that they had suspected something like that for quite some time. Some pleaded with Alegro to have the intruders taken away immediately for saying such things.
The Prime Minister held up his hands to silence everyone. “Enough! You have told us nothing to back up what you have claimed. How can you expect us to believe you?”
Cherish took a bold step forward. “Hulaki has sent us!” The guards moved closer to her. She was careful not to take another step, but she kept talking. “He was revealed after the massacre! He and his followers will take down the emperor!”
The Josti female that had sp
oken earlier in the meeting scoffed at her. “Hulaki is just a legend! Only a fool would believe that he was real person.”
Another representative was looking around at the others with a perplexed look on his face. “Who?”
Nial raised his voice above the others. “Let her speak! Listening will cost us nothing. We should at least hear her out.”
The room quieted to a few hushed whispers. Everyone waited to hear what Cherish was going to say next. It was clear that some of them were only humoring her, and had no intention of believing her. Still, she had to try. Theo was counting on her.
Cherish took a moment, making eye contact with all of the council in turn as she spoke. “Batumah has chosen Hulaki from among the acolytes at the Kinyah monastery. Batumah appeared to him, and gave him the option to choose his destiny. He has chosen to help the people of the galaxy to find true enlightenment. Prophecy says that he will come from humble beginnings, and he will rise above them. Theo started out as a farmer. He proved himself worthy on the climb to the monastery, and was gifted while he was there.”
The mention of Theo’s gift prompted someone to ask what they were all thinking. “What gift does he have?”
Cherish was a little surprised that out of everything she had said, the gift was what they were focused on. “He was given the gift of body manipulation which became the ability to heal others. Actually, he brought me back from the dead. I wouldn’t be here now without him.”
A council member sat up straighter. “He can heal others? That isn’t a common gift.”
Cherish continued her story. “I’m here today because Theo—Hulaki—needs your help.”
The Relissarium Wars Omnibus Page 50
