Feral Empires: First Spark

by Stephen L. Hadley

  This was almost exactly what Jenn had feared from the beginning. If Kathryn was lying, or even if she merely lost control, he could easily wind up dead. And from there it wasn’t hard to imagine what would happen. Memories of Jenn’s vines wrapped tight around Kathryn’s throat, choking her, rose to the surface of his mind.

  “What happens if you don’t drink blood?” he asked.

  Kathryn’s face dropped and she shrugged.

  “Slow, weak, tired,” she said. “Now? Bad. Worse soon. Hurts. Hurts bad.”

  Liam groaned, already knowing what his answer would be, however much he wanted to refuse. He cast another glance in Jenn’s direction. He’d made plenty of mistakes, but this could easily prove to be the worst one.

  “Okay,” he said. Squeezing Kathryn’s hand, he gave her the sternest look he possibly could. “Just a little bit. If Jenn finds out, she’ll kill us both.”

  Kathryn nodded enthusiastically. Following the direction of Liam’s earlier looks, she glanced toward Jenn and smiled.

  “Only feed,” she said. “Plant-girl sleep. Kathryn feed. Secret.”

  Sighing, Liam stared toward Jenn, watching for any sign of movement. He cocked his head to expose his neck and tried not to think about those fangs had felt the last time. It was one thing to experience them immediately after enduring a dozen broken bones, quite another without such comparable pain.

  To his surprise, Kathryn climbed into his lap. Straddling him, she wrapped her arms around his back.

  Liam started, pulling back instinctively.

  “What are you d—?”

  Kathryn pressed a finger to his lips, silencing his protests. Leaning in, she nuzzled the side of his neck. The feeling sent shivers down his spine.

  “Secret,” she whispered. “Before, Kathryn not sleep. Kathryn see Liam and Plant-girl. Secret. Now, Liam and Kathryn. Secret.”

  “Only feed,” Liam said quickly. He frowned. Why had he started speaking like her?

  “Only feed,” Kathryn agreed.

  Her breath was hot against his neck and Liam felt the brush of something impossibly sharp against his skin. He shivered again, closing his eyes as he waited.

  “For now,” she added and bit down.

  ***

  Liam forced himself to continue breathing evenly as another fit of dizziness flared up. His eyes were already closed, but the feeling of the ground beneath him was enough orientation to make his head spin, regardless. He held Kathryn against his chest, partly because the warmth of her body helped keep the chills at bay and partly because he was certain that the stability she provided was the only thing keeping him seated upright.

  The girl’s hair was incredibly soft, even more than Jenn’s, and he couldn’t help but run his fingers through the short, downy fluff as she nursed. It was a strange way to think of it, but the comparison was undeniable. Especially given that the quiet slurping of the girl drinking his blood was the only sound that broke the otherwise silent night.

  The pain in Liam’s neck grew suddenly worse and he let slip an involuntary gasp as Kathryn drew back slightly. The pain of her fangs sliding free of his flesh reminded him of how it had felt to lose teeth. It was a short-lived discomfort, however. And the girl kept her lips tightly wrapped around the wound until it finally closed and she had lapped every last drop of blood from his skin.

  “All done?” he asked. He kept his eyes closed, waiting for his body to catch up and his vertigo to fade.

  Kathryn answered with a contented giggle and flopped over. She was still lying on her back when Liam opened his eyes, staring up at the sky with an almost drugged expression.

  “Good blood,” she mumbled. “Good, good blood. Best!”

  Unable to keep a straight face, she broke out into a wide grin and kicked her legs up into the air. Liam immediately looked away, face growing warm. Kathryn wore nothing beneath her dress and, though he was surprised his body still had enough blood to manage a blush, he wasn’t so lightheaded to give in that easily.

  Reaching over, he guided Kathryn’s legs back to the ground and blindly tugged the hem of her dress back into place.

  Kathryn giggled again as she grasped his wrist and tried, unsuccessfully to keep it there. Rolling onto her side, she made a show of allowing it to ride up again as she stared at him.

  “Why?” she said. “Liam like.”

  “I don’t,” he lied. “And I don’t want Jenn to kill me.”

  Tugging her dress up until it left nothing to the imagination, Kathryn grinned. “Secret,” she said. “Liam and Kathryn secret.”

  Scowling, he forced her dress back down, yet again.

  “No more secrets,” he insisted. “I only have room for one.”

  “Two.” At his look of confusion, her grin widened. “Plant-girl secret. Blood-secret. Two secrets.”

  Liam pinched the bridge of his nose and pointed behind him into the barn. “Would you just go to sleep?”

  “Please.”

  He sighed. “Please, Kathryn, go to sleep.”

  With another giggle, the girl climbed to her feet. For a moment, she made as if to obey. Then she paused, raced back, and kissed his cheek. With eyes full of mischievous energy, she twirled and darted into the barn’s darkened interior.

  Liam watched for a time, to ensure she would not poke her head back out a few seconds later, then muttered a curse and returned to his vigil.

  What the hell have I done?

  Chapter Eleven

  Liam didn’t remember dozing off. He hadn’t even fallen asleep—not really—but the sky was certainly several shades lighter than it had been the last time he checked. In any case, it was the sound of Jenn scrambling out of the tree that startled him back to full alertness.

  And, instantly, he spotted the reason why she had stirred.

  Lights, still distant but unmistakably manmade, swiveled through the early morning gloom. It was too dark to discern any details about those wielding them, but the implications were clear.

  Liam leapt to his feet and locked eyes with Jenn. He gestured at himself, the barn, at her, and then made a sweeping gesture with his arm, indicating a path that would lead them away from the searchers at a right angle.

  Jenn nodded and began to stretch. No, not stretching—a multitude of vines rose at her command and began to arm themselves with thorns and crudely manufactured javelins. Apparently, she’d already been awake for at least an hour.

  Fighting down a surge of shame at having fallen asleep, Liam turned and slipped silently into the barn. He found Kathryn already stirring when he entered and quickly held a finger up to his lips. She shook herself awake as he gathered up his rifle and the supplies he’d stored, and the two of them exited together.

  From her expression, Jenn was no happier to see Kathryn than she’d been the day before, but obviously made no comment as the three of them did their best to vanish into the woods without a trace.

  It wasn’t long before Kathryn spotted the lights. She stopped short, catching Liam’s wrist and gesturing.

  “Institute!” she whispered, before he could shush her. Quieter, she added, “how many?”

  Ignoring Jenn’s furious glare, Liam kept still as he counted the approaching lights. Though it was difficult to be sure, given their constantly shifting nature, it looked to be approximately a dozen. Certainly no fewer than ten.

  “Twelve?” he whispered back. “Could be more without lights.”

  Kathryn’s face lit up with a brilliant smile.

  “Can kill!” she said, unable to keep her enthusiasm to a whisper. “Can kill twelve! Fast and strong! Can show!”

  This time, Liam took note of the look Jenn sent his way. Or, more precisely, he noted the rather threatening way her vines rose as if to strike. The message was clear.

  Shut her up, or I will.

  He took Kathryn’s hand and gave her a gentle tug to urge her along.

  “Later,” he whispered. “You can show me l
ater, Kathryn.”

  “But—”

  “Kat, please! Show me later.”

  “Kat?”

  Biting back a growl, it was all Liam could do not to scoop the girl up in his arms and carry her to safety.

  “Secret!” he hissed. “Later! Come!”

  This time, mercifully, she did not argue. Kathryn allowed herself to be led away from the men, though she glanced back over her shoulder from time to time as if mourning the lost opportunity.

  It was not until more than an hour later, when the sun had begun that peek out over the hills, that they stopped to rest and Liam allowed himself to breathe a sigh of relief. The feeling was short-lived, however, as Jenn whirled and fixed him with a look that made the hair on the back of his neck stand up.

  “That’s twice that she’s almost gotten us killed,” she reminded him.

  Liam glanced toward Kathryn, who balanced atop a fallen, half-rotted log, hands outstretched.

  “It won’t happen again,” he promised her.

  “I know. Next time, she’ll actually get us killed.”

  Liam accepted the comment without a retort. It wasn’t as though he disagreed—not really. Kathryn was dangerous. But, at the same time, he couldn’t simply abandon her. Though not publically or in as many words as Scott, he’d promised himself to protect her in much the same fashion.

  “So, what’s the plan?” he said.

  Jenn glanced around, surveying the terrain, then at the sliver of sun visible through the trees.

  “We’re headed northwest, back toward the road,” she said. “The Occs are obviously looking for whoever ambushed the convoy. They’ll know we have her.”

  “We’re not using Kathryn as a distraction.”

  Jenn growled. “I wasn’t going to suggest that. I say we keep heading this direction, until we find a place to ambush the next convoy. Then, we wait.”

  “Sounds good. How far do you think—?”

  “Liam!” Kathryn chirped suddenly. She was still balanced atop her log, now with one foot held out to the side for extra challenge. She wavered momentarily, then caught herself and pointed straight ahead. “Who?”

  Liam was moving before he even spotted the person. He caught Kathryn around the middle, half-tackling, half-carrying her to the ground. Jenn wasn’t far behind, sliding into cover behind the fallen tree. Her vines rose, some interweaving to shield them while others rose to retaliate.

  After several seconds, when no gunfire came their way, Liam carefully poked his head up. Beside him, Jenn did the same thing, while Kathryn busied herself scowling and wiping the dirt and bits of crumbling log from her dress. It took several seconds more for them to spot the person Kathryn had pointed out.

  And, even then, Liam did not believe what he was seeing.

  It was a child. The boy couldn’t have been older than six or seven. He darted from tree to tree, barely waiting between sprints, and from the carrying sound of his indistinct voice, seemed to be talking to himself. Every so often he would look around, raise a broken piece of wood to his shoulder, and pantomime firing a rifle.

  When he could stand observing no longer, Liam turned to Jenn and muttered quietly, “What the hell is he doing?”

  After the panic of hiding themselves, Jenn’s smile caught him off-guard.

  “He’s playing, Liam,” she said.

  “Playing? Shouldn’t he be training or working or something?”

  “Probably.” The stifled laughter in Jenn’s voice was so out of place that Liam couldn’t help but glance around, searching for the trap. It had to be a trap, didn’t it?

  “But, why here? Doesn’t he know there are Occs?”

  “He must live around here,” she replied. “Let’s just wait. We can follow him home. If there are people, they must have a source of water.”

  Liam couldn’t argue with her logic and settled back to wait. Unfortunately, the boy seemed to have no interest in returning home. He continued to roam and leap about, gunning down a seemingly endless number of imaginary foes. Eventually, despite his impatience, Liam couldn’t help but admire the boy’s determination. He’d single-handedly killed hundreds, after all.

  Finally, after an eternity of waiting, reinforcements arrived.

  It was a woman, red-faced and wearing trousers beneath a too-small dress. She spotted the boy and quickly stomped toward him. The lad froze as he spotted her and, contrary to his demonstrated martial prowess, made no attempt to flee.

  “—hell do you think you’re doing?” the woman raged. Her voice carried easily. The boy’s muttered reply did not. “I told you to watch your sister!”

  Again, the boy made an inaudible reply.

  “No, no! I don’t care! Get your ass back there right now, or I swear to Christ you’ll be cleaning up the goat shit with your bare hands!”

  That did the trick. At this, the boy took off at a run, presumably heading back to the duty he’d been avoiding. The woman, on the other hand, lingered and cast a suspicious look around.

  Crouching in the underbrush, Liam held his breath as he felt the woman’s searching gaze. It wasn’t as though she was a threat, but she could easily bring the Occs down on them. Her voice was rather booming, after all.

  Eventually, she left, and Liam turned his attention to the women on either side of him. Jenn squatted in a similar manner, eyes narrow as she tracked the woman through the trees.

  Kathryn was asleep. The sight was so surprising that Liam nearly forgot all about the need for stealth and laughed aloud. He gave her a gentle shake and averted his eyes as the girl stirred and the motion hiked her dress up dangerously high.

  “Food?” she mumbled.

  Liam shook his head as he helped her to her feet. “No,” he said. “Hopefully water, though.”

  Kathryn nodded sleepily and yawned, exposing her fangs. The sight of them made Liam’s neck ache and, again, he looked away.

  “Let’s go,” Jenn said coldly. She climbed over the log that sheltered them, using her vines, rather than her hands for balance.

  Nudging Kathryn’s side, Liam followed after. He allowed her to pass him and used his position as the rearguard to search the hills and trees for any hint of the Occs. There were none, but the confirmation didn’t make him feel any better. They had covered only a few miles since the ambush, so there was no telling how many were still nearby.

  Liam clutched the strap of the rifle slung over his shoulder. One shot and they’d have every Occ this side of the Institute descending on them. He’d do it if forced to, of course. But the mere thought of the consequences left him exhausted.

  He’d already had enough running and hiding for a lifetime.

  ***

  It took them a quarter of an hour to reach the village, since they were forced to remain hidden as they advanced. Truthfully, they could have moved faster if it wasn’t for Kathryn. The girl seemed to have woken from her nap with more energy than Liam could fathom and if it hadn’t been for the hand he kept locked around her wrist, she would undoubtedly have rushed ahead and given them away.

  The trees had been cleared from around the buildings, leaving fifty yards of fenced, tilled earth in every direction. And, unlike the mostly abandoned, pre-war structures that Liam and Jenn had passed before, these were obviously occupied. Two of the largest, pre-war as well, had armed sentries stationed atop them. The others were more ramshackle, but nevertheless showed signs of professional construction. Rather than a hodgepodge of reclaimed sheet metal and wooden scraps, the dozen or so buildings had been efficiently constructed of felled timber and a dirty grey mortar that filled the gaps.

  Jenn stopped first, hiding herself in a natural ditch a short distance from the edge of the tree line and waving them over. Liam joined her carefully, half-dragging Kathryn after him.

  “They’ve got bows,” Jenn whispered, studying the roof-based guards.

  Liam frowned, squinting. “Those are rifles.”

  “The
y’re just for show.” She pointed at the nearest of the buildings. “Look. Left side, right at the edge.”

  As soon as she pointed it out, Liam saw the bundle he’d missed. He muttered a curse and glanced her way, one brow lifting in inquiry.

  “I’ve seen it before,” she said, modestly. “Ammunition is rare. They probably don’t want to use it unless they have to.”

  “Do they know we’re here? How many do you think there are?”

  Jenn shook her head. “I doubt it. They might’ve heard the ambush though. Based on the buildings, I’d say there are probably fifty or so. They probably keep a few guards at all times.”

  “Fifty?” Kathryn cut in, eyes wide. She looked at Liam. “Institute?”

  He shook his head. “No. They might not even be Occs.”

  The girl’s expression brightened and she flashed her fangs. “Not Institute? Can kill fifty. Can show?”

  Liam’s fingers tightened around the girl’s wrist as he shared an uncomfortable look with Jenn.

  “No,” he said, decisively. “Definitely not. We’re not going to kill anyone.”

  “None?” Kathryn sounded disappointed.

  Ignoring her, Liam returned his attention to Jenn.

  “What’s the plan?” he asked.

  Jenn didn’t answer right away. She chewed her lip, eyes flicking from building to building as she considered the question. Eventually, she sat back and shook her head slowly.

  “It’s too risky,” she said, at last. “The fence, the guards—they’re too well defended. I think we should move on.”

  “We need water,” he reminded her, tapping his canteen. The sound it made was unmistakably hollow.

  “We can find it somewhere else.”

  Liam wanted to argue, but knew she was right. With the Occs so near, they couldn’t take unnecessary risks. He’d been thirsty before. He would live.

  With the sound of rustling leaves, a man dropped from the trees ten yards behind them. Liam spun, breath catching in his chest and a paralyzing fear seizing him in the time it took to blink. The sight that greeted him would have emptied his bladder if it hadn’t already been empty.