The Relissarium Wars Omnibus

by Andrew C Broderick

  Suddenly, the pull was gone. His kicks sent them rushing deeper in the water. His lungs burned for oxygen. Theo noticed Cierra’s head lolling from side to side. She struggled to stay conscious, but she had been given even less time to take a deep breath than he had. For the first time, he realized that it wasn’t only the vortex than had been sucking Cierra out of his grasp. She had been trying to escape from under his arm because she needed air. Her hair swirled around them like lifeless seaweed. Fresh panic clawed at him.

  Theo spun around in the water. He kicked in the direction he thought was up. All he could do was pray that they would break the surface soon. Just when he thought that he couldn’t take it anymore, Theo’s head broke the surface. He pulled Cierra up. Her head was still limp. He couldn’t feel any rise and fall from her chest.

  Looking around for somewhere where he could pump the water out of her lungs, Theo saw the destruction of the dark matter. The entire center platform was gone, along with the rest of the bridge. The air was thin. The vortex hadn’t only take the rock with it. It had also taken about half of the lake water, and most of the oxygen in the room, too.

  Theo called out against hope. “Help! Someone, help!”

  Makram peered over the edge of the pit, having hidden behind the door during the detonation. “Ah, so you did survive, after all.”

  Cierra still wasn’t breathing. Theo looked up at Makram. “Please, please help her.”

  “And, why should I do that?” He clicked his tongue as if he were bored.

  Theo slapped his palm against the water. “If you help me save her, I’ll…I’ll…” Theo’s mind was racing he couldn’t think of a good bargaining chip.

  Makram offered up a suggestion. “If I get you out of there, then you will swear on your duty as Hulaki to come with me without putting up a fight. That is the price.”

  Theo glanced at Cierra. He locked eyes with Makram. Could he give up his vengeance on Makram for her? Was her life worth that? It wasn’t even really a question. His heart answered instead of his head. Theo gritted his teeth. “Fine!”

  “Say it!”

  Theo looked down at Cierra. “Please forgive me for this.” He raised his voice for Makram and the other soldiers to hear. “I swear on my duty as Hulaki that I will come with you without putting up a fight.”

  Makram snickered. “Good.” He dropped a rope ladder down the side of the crater that was only moments ago filled with water. “You better climb quickly. She doesn’t look so good.”

  Theo swam over to the ladder. He balanced Cierra over his shoulder, so he could carry her up to the lip of the pit. The flesh on his hand was healing slowly. His gift was almost depleted. He would need food to gain back his strength. How long had Cierra been unconscious? How long had it been since she had stopped breathing? He climbed as fast as he could. The rope bit into the raw, pink skin on his injured hand.

  As he neared the edge of the rock cliff. Soldiers leaned down to haul him and Cierra onto solid ground. Theo crawled over to her. Her lips were tinged blue. His healing might be limited, but there were other ways to save someone that had taken in too much water. Theo parted her lips, and tilted her head back. He filled his own lungs with air, and breathed into her mouth. Pressing his hands over her chest, Theo began doing compressions. After a few moments, he breathed more air into her lungs.

  Karl hooked his thumb through his beltloop. “Well, junior, looks like your luck finally ran out.”

  Theo ignored him. He leaned over Cierra again. “Come on. Come on, breathe!” He pressed his hands harder against her chest. “This isn’t how you die. It can’t be.”

  Karl laughed, and looked at his brother. “He’s a determined little pup, isn’t he?”

  Theo took in another deep breath, and forced it into Cierra’s mouth. She still wasn’t responding. He tried to make his gift flow into her, but there wasn’t enough left to do anything. He had already used up so much energy, and now, when he really needed it, he was useless. “Please, please, come on.”

  Makram glanced at his chronometer. “I think that’s about enough. Grab him.”

  Some soldiers moved forward to grab Theo’s arms, but he jerked away and snapped at them. “If you touch me, I swear, I will rip you limb from limb!”

  Makram tutted at him. “Now, now, Theo. A deal is a deal.”

  “The deal was if she lived!”

  “No,” Makram smirked. “The deal was if I got you out of the lake, then you would come with me without putting up a fight. Whether or not Cierra lived was never a part of our agreement.”

  Theo barred his teeth. “You son of a—” He lunged at Makram, but was held back by two muscular soldiers.

  Makram drove a punch into Theo’s jawline. “You made the deal, Theo. Now, who would follow you if they knew Hulaki didn’t keep his agreements?”

  Theo struggled in their grasp. He growled at Makram. “How do you live with yourself at night?”

  Makram chuckled. “Quite nicely, actually.” He jerked his head at the soldiers. “Bring him.” Makram turned and started walking down the hallway towards the lab.

  Theo glanced back at Cierra. His heart ached in his chest. He started to fight against the soldiers heaving him towards the doorway, but there wasn’t much use. He was exhausted, and was losing his will to fight. Theo wasn’t sure how much more defeat he could take.

  His eyes tried to soak in the last sight of Cierra that he would ever have. Her hair was spread out like a wet halo around her face. She looked peaceful. The angelic image clashed with the fighter that he had known her to be. Theo whispered a silent prayer in his mind, willing her to come back to life. Feeling tears starting to well up in his eyes, he turned away from her.

  A loud cough echoed through the chamber. Theo spun around. Cierra was coughing up water. Her eyes were open with fear. With the guards distracted, Theo managed to wriggle free from their grasp. He ran back to where Cierra was still lying on the ground. She sat up and leaned over on one elbow. Water poured from her mouth. Theo patted her back to help her cough it up. He held her hair back until she was able to suck in a breath of air. Even though the oxygen left in the room was meager, it was still more than she had sucked in since the orb had broken.

  Theo caressed her hair, and pushed it away from her face. “Are you okay? Are you hurt anywhere?”

  Cierra shook her head. She was still struggling to cough up half a lungful of water. After a moment she nodded that she was okay. “I’m fine,” she mouthed between coughs.

  Theo pulled her into a tight embrace. “I thought I’d lost you.”

  She coughed again, and hugged him back. “It’ll take more than a little lake water to kill me.”

  He chuckled. “Let’s keep it that way.”

  Makram rolled his eyes. “As touching as this is, we have a schedule to keep.” He raised his eyebrow at Theo. “Shall we?”

  “Theo?” Cierra looked at him, confused. She held onto his hand, as he started to stand up. “What’s he talking about?”

  Tapping his chronometer, Makram smirked at Theo. “Better tell her quickly.”

  Theo looked at the ground. He couldn’t look deep into her green eyes, and tell her what he had agreed to. “I swore that I would go with him without putting up a fight, if he got us out of the lake.”

  Disbelief contorted her face. “What? Why?”

  Makram scoffed. “Come on, Cierra. It really isn’t that complicated to figure out.”

  Sadness filled her eyes. “You did it for me, didn’t you? You took his deal to get me up here, so you could try to save me.”

  Makram clapped his hands. “Ding, ding, ding! We have a winner.”

  “Theo,” her lips trembled, “you shouldn’t have done that.”

  Makram walked over to her, and gripped her chin in his hand. He forced her to look at Theo. “There isn’t anything that a man wouldn’t do to save the woman he loves.”

  Theo snarled at him. “Let go of her!”

  Makram gave Cierra’s face
a rough shake before letting go of her. “You know, Theo, I thought I had a good bargaining chip when I learned that Mari was still alive. That was until I saw you today with Cierra. You see, I thought that there might be something going on between you two, but watching you just now confirmed it for me. You really do wear your heart on your sleeve, don’t you?”

  Theo clenched his fists by his side. “Shut up.” He couldn’t dare to look at Cierra. He didn’t want to see her reaction.

  One of the soldiers looked at Cierra. “What do you want us to do with her?”

  Makram’s smile widened. “Bring her with us. I don’t think she’s outlived her usefulness yet. Having her on board could come in handy.”

  Theo yelled at Prince Makramis. “Don’t you dare hurt her!”

  Makram chuckled. “Now that, depends entirely on you, Theo,” he said, like a teacher coercing a problem child. He took another step towards the hallway. “Shall we?”

  Theo followed behind Makram without putting up a fight. He heard the soldiers moving behind him. Cierra cursed at them, but let them lead her along the hallway. A pod was waiting for them in the shaft. Theo continued to avoid Cierra’s eye. He felt like he had let her down. Once the pod was full of soldiers, the two princes, and their new captives, it shot upwards towards ground level.

  The pod jerked to a stop, and the doors opened. Theo and Cierra were led out into a docking bay. An imperial ship was waiting for them. It was big enough to house several of the craft that Theo was used to flying in. The sheer size of the ship made his stomach drop. He had a bad feeling about this. Wherever they were going, it wasn’t going to be some little planet on the outskirts of the empire.

  Makram turned to the guards stationed beside Theo and Cierra. A malicious smile twisted his lips as he gave the order. “Lock them up. Separately.”

  Attack

  The Relissarium Wars Space Opera Series, Book 10

  One

  The rattle of keys made Cierra’s heart race. A bright light pierced the darkness of her cell. She shielded her eyes, trying to see who was there.

  Her only companion through the entire voyage had been the whine of the engines. She had been secluded from all human contact for what felt like a week. The actual amount of time eluded her. Inside of the imperial ship, there was no sunlight to mark the passage of days. In true cunning, Makram fashion, the imperial prince had even denied her meals, to keep her from being able to judge the time by how often she was fed. Cierra’s ribs were starting to form a staircase down her sides. Hunger gnawed away at her insides as her stomach began to devour itself. She tried to avoid touching her hair. It had become brittle from dehydration and malnutrition. Her head swam if she turned it too quickly. Makram had spent years fighting beside her, learning what she was capable of. He knew her limits, and had no qualms about pushing her to them.

  The door swung open. A guard barked orders at her. In her diminished state, it took Cierra a moment to process what he had said. “Get up. Put your hands behind your back.”

  The continuous whine she had been listening to for several days—or weeks—slowed a little. The change made her ears perk up. Cierra staggered weakly to her feet, praying that she wouldn’t lose consciousness in front of the guard. She tried to wet her lips, but her tongue was dry sandpaper in her mouth. “Are we landing?”

  The guard slapped some heavy metal cuffs on her wrists. “Walk.”

  Cierra passed through the doorway. To her surprise, it wasn’t just a single guard that had come to collect her. A huge squad of armed soldiers were waiting in the corridor. “All of this for little old me? You shouldn’t have.” Her sarcastic appreciation didn’t elicit any reactions from the imperial guards, but it did make her feel slightly better. She glimpsed her reflection in the shiny metal of the walls. Dark circles under her eyes, plus her slightly gray skin stretched tight, made her look almost skeletal. Cierra turned away from the image.

  A few small windows showed that it was sunny outside. An unfamiliar city covered in white marble and gold filigree gleamed in the light. She had expected Karl and Makram to take them to the planet where they were amassing their forces for the coup. She just hadn’t expected it to be so extravagant. The gold glittering in the sun hurt her eyes. The echoes of marching boots made her head pound.

  Cierra followed the guard that was leading the way. The others formed an impenetrable wall behind her. Slowly, she started to realize they were going back through the ship the same way she had been brought in.

  The corridor opened up into a huge chamber before the gangway. A clatter to her right made Cierra turn. Theo was being marched to the same chamber by double the amount of guards that still hovered around Cierra. She couldn’t help but scoff. So, Makram thought that Theo was a bigger threat than she was. The subtle insult made her clench her jaw.

  Theo’s eyes caught her. “Cierra…” His eyes were full of apologies for getting her caught in the crosshairs of his deal with Makram.

  She turned away from him. There was too much happening. She couldn’t process their personal feelings when she needed to focus on finding an opportunity to escape. From the corner of her eye, she saw his head drop. It made her chest ache, but there was no sense in pursuing anything. Mari was still alive, and he was still married to her.

  The sound of drawn out applause from one set of hands broke the silence. Makram walked into the chamber. The white, royal uniform he wore fit snugly over his body, and showed off his physique. A blue sash was draped across one of his shoulders. “I’m so glad you both could make it. I’m certain that today wouldn’t be nearly as much of a celebration without our two guests of honor.”

  Theo snarled at him. “If this is how you treat your guests of honor, I would hate to see how you treat your regular subjects.”

  Makram smirked. “Oh, you don’t have to worry your pretty little head about that. You’ll never be a regular subject again. I’m sure we can find you permanent accommodations somewhere dark and cold.”

  Prince Karl moved forward from the shadows. His uniform matched Makram’s, except that instead of a blue sash he had a red one. “Didn’t your mother ever teach you not to play with your food?”

  Makram frowned a little at his older brother. “Actually, she taught me to savor every moment.”

  Karl cocked one eyebrow. “I suppose that’s where our training differs then. Mine taught me that actions speak louder than words. Don’t tell the young pup what you’re going to do to him. Just do it.”

  Cierra sensed the tension between the two brothers, as Karl stepped past Makram and stood in front of the doors. She saw Makram clench his fist the way he used to do when he was holding back his anger in front of the council. His face may have remained cocky, but his hands gave him away.

  Once both princes were in position, the doors opened. A metal gangway slowly extended to a stage. The sounds of applause when the two men exited the ship were almost deafening. Cierra and Theo were marched out of the ship. A ring of soldiers flanked them on all sides. Between them, Cierra glimpsed thousands of people amassed to witness the return of the two princes. If their plan to overthrow the emperor was so recent, how had they been able to gather so many followers so quickly?

  That was when she saw the podium. The emperor’s crest of a stylized man and woman in the center of a circle of chain links was carved into the marble and inlaid with gold. They weren’t at Makram and Karl’s launching point for the rebellion. They had landed on Castor, the emperor’s home world.

  Emperor Pollus was seated in a throne to the side of the podium. His black and gold cape was draped over his shoulders. The crown on his head was a circlet of polished bone from a now-extinct animal on a faraway planet. Makram and Karl bowed their heads to their father. A sharp kick in the back sent Cierra and Theo to their knees. The soldiers bowed, and then snapped back to attention.

  Makram positioned himself behind the podium. He waited for the adoring crowd to quiet down before he spoke. “Great people of Castor, your princ
es have quashed the Yasta threat!” A roar of approval echoed from the masses. “Your children can rest easy once more!”

  Karl edged his way behind the microphone, cutting his brother off in the most professional way he could. “We have developed new weapons technologies to ensure your protection, and the protection of future generations. Under our guidance and diligent watch, rebels like the Yasta will never be able to threaten you again. As proof of this promise, we have brought you this!” Karl waved his arm towards the guards.

  They parted, to allow the citizens to see Theo and Cierra. The crowd booed at the sight of them. Some of the citizens even threw rotten fruits and vegetables at them. Theo leaned over the top of Cierra to try and block her from the worst of it. Pieces of rotten food splattered on the stage and clung to their bodies. As much as it repulsed her, Cierra’s stomach growled with hunger. It was the first time she had even seen any food since they were captured at the armory. The realization of how far she had sunk to honestly consider eating the rotten produce made Cierra hate herself.

  Karl continued his speech, once most of the crowd had settled down. “These are the last two Relissarians who sought to stop us from uprooting the rebellion. Father, on this anniversary of your birth, we give you these two traitors to do with as you please.”

  Cierra’s eyes were filled with horror. Makram and Karl were handing them over to their father as proof of their loyalty to both the citizens of Castor and Emperor Pollus. She glared at Makram with enough force that he had to feel her eyes on him. He stood resolutely facing the crowd, refusing to look at his former teammates.

  For the first time since they had arrived, the emperor stood up from his throne. He was aged, but his skin was held taut by chemical injections and unnatural treatments. Pollus walked with the air of a man who had long ago fallen in love with his own myths. His arms were tucked behind his back, and each step was equally measured. The guards bowed their heads at his approach, and parted respectfully. The emperor’s polished boots stopped in front of Cierra. He grabbed her chin and tilted it up so he could judge her face.