Unleashed

by D. R. Johnson

  “I won’t go as easy on you this time.”

  Jaskia noticed the gray hair before the man finished maneuvering through the other soldiers. Captain Nelson fired his rifle at Nait, who escaped by leaping toward Li and Sem’s barricade. The other three returned fire but Nelson dodged each shot, still sporting the pompous look from the prison.

  “You were lucky that her Highness wanted you to escape,” Nelson said, progressing toward the group. The other soldiers marched behind him and fired, hitting Jaskia in the shoulder as the barrage of lasers overcame their position. “You aren’t so lucky now.”

  “Do you ever shut up?!” Nait said, yelling above another rumble and toppling a box so that it’d give him cover. “Really should stop and listen to yourself.”

  Another swarm of red. Jaskia stumbled and let herself fall, but a shot still managed to graze her upper arm. She grunted but kept her focus on Nelson. He neared all of them but Nait took his attention. She crawled forward, while another set of red lasers destroyed one of Sem’s boxes.

  Jaskia glared at her protégé, warning her to stay back. She saw the anger in the flushed cheeks of the 12-year-old.

  “I wanted to take the lead in finishing you kids off,” Nelson said, now aiming his rifle directly at Nait. Another soldier followed close behind. “Seemed fitting after all this time. I’ll bring the Queen your fried corpse and give it to her as a gift of justice.”

  Jaskia didn’t take her eyes away from Sem. She crawled further and extended one finger toward the soldier behind Captain Nelson. She remembered his tactics on Danforth, so if Sem listened, he’d repeat the process now.

  “Maybe it’ll remind her of your sister in that cell.”

  Nait screamed. Sem turned her eyes toward the soldier. More lasers flew around them but Jaskia and Sem both stared at the soldier closest to Nelson. Li blinked but followed along, aiming his rifle at the soldier. Jaskia nodded and tapped her trigger.

  Purple and orange lasers erupted from their guns, colliding with the soldier and killing him at once. Captain Nelson yelled and whirled around, examining the smoldering corpse. Other red lasers came at the group again, forcing Jaskia onto her feet. However, she already knew what Nelson would do.

  He turned and ran toward his re-enforcements. Jaskia sprinted after him.

  “Cowards are predictable,” she said, hissing as another shot hit her other arm. She fired at Nelson and her orange laser exploded on his armored back but he kept going. She increased her speed and jumped, clutching the back of his armor and putting her pistol to his temple.

  Jaskia slammed her boots into the metal, pulling Nelson back as gunfire ceased. Another crash of thunder resounded.

  “You’re making a mi—” Nelson said, coughing.

  “You should take Nait’s advice,” Jaskia said, hitting his forehead and looking at the horde of silver in front of her. “Don’t move or fire. I’ll kill him.”

  Nait ran to her side, aiming his pistol at the crowd and scowling at Nelson. “Tell them to drop their weapons.”

  “This is the royal army,” Captain Nelson said, spitting at the teenagers. He struggled against Jaskia, but she tightened her grip on his armor and hit him again. “You know we can’t be stopped.”

  “Obviously, you can be,” Jaskia said, tapping his head again. Several soldiers took the lead and crept toward her and Nait. “I said don’t move! Call them off, Captain.”

  Only rain stood between the hesitant soldiers and Jaskia. She blinked the liquid out of her eyes, listening to another roar from the sky. Nait’s position didn’t break, ready to shoot any soldier that charged, while Jaskia evaluated her choices. This standoff wouldn’t last long but it kept the soldiers outside.

  “Don’t give in to her demands,” Nelson said, coughing again. “Execute her and I’ll kill the—”

  The roar above became visual. The familiar shuttle broke through the gray clouds and descended toward the Killer’s landing pad. Jaskia nodded at Nait.

  “Change of strategy.”

  Jaskia shoved Captain Nelson forward, sending two lasers into the back of his leg. As more red gunfire burst toward them, Jaskia and Nait turned and dove toward the doorway. A laser hit her side and another laser hit Nait’s back but Jaskia focused too much on the new enemy to think about the pain. Li and Sem darted inside the tower, before Jaskia and Nait rolled inside.

  Jaskia hit the wall and stood upright, yanking Nait onto his feet. The soldiers charged and fired, but she and Nait only stared at each other with one goal.

  “Let’s stop her,” Nait said.

  Lady Cerasi crouched on the roof, examining the surrounding chaos. She spotted the royal army breaching the four towers on multiple levels, while various fugitives attempted to establish some type of defense. She saw no need to interfere, as the army greatly outnumbered the defectors. Sounds of zooming lasers and cries proved dominant around the four interweaved structures. Victory became imminent, especially as the Queen’s shuttle descended through the severe storms.

  Lady Cerasi still had to carry out the Queen’s orders. Only they mattered. The Queen would only achieve victory once she exterminated Catalan’s leadership.

  Her retreat served as the best strategic choice, but now, the army occupied the fugitives’ attention. She could return to her primary objective.

  She dropped to the window several feet below, rolling into the room she previously fled. The leader, Kasco, occupied her trajectory directly ahead. He whirled around and raised his hands, backing toward the other end of the room.

  “Pl-Please. C-Call off the Queen’s forces. This is all our people have—”

  The time for negotiations had ended when he’d rejected the Queen’s proposal. Lady Cerasi removed her knife and tackled Kasco, putting the knife to his neck. Before she could complete the execution, her back armor absorbed a bolt.

  The blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy charged her from the left. She grabbed Kasco’s neck and regained her footing, avoiding the boy’s next shot. She backpedaled, holding Kasco in front of her as a shield.

  “Scout, it’s Naos. Come on, you gotta remember,” Naos said, grimacing. “This isn’t you. You’re not a killer!”

  Lady Cerasi could humor this boy no longer. She raised her knife toward Kasco again, but another bolt impacted her hand, throwing the knife to the floor. As she looked over her shoulder to see the defectors’ leader in the doorway, Kasco broke free from her other hand and ran to his defender.

  “Sorry, Lady Cerasi,” the leader said, pointing his rifle and clicking a button on its side. “It’s time for you to remember who you are.”

  She exhaled, refusing to display the frustration. Naos reached her from behind but she flipped backward, landing behind him and removing her pistol. He swung his arm toward her, knocking the pistol out of her hand before she could touch the trigger. The leader fired but she ducked, grasping Naos’ wrist and twisting before he could fire again.

  She recalled the final target in the training room. She would uphold the Queen’s training.

  “Scout, I’m not here to hur—” Naos said, wincing from the twist. Lady Cerasi punched his stomach, throwing him back a few feet.

  “Naos, I have to stun her if worst comes to—”

  “Sora, don’t,” Naos said, gasping. “I can do this. I-I want to!”

  Lady Cerasi spotted Kasco cowering behind Sora. She removed her other pistol and began to sprint, but Naos crashed into her right side. They both toppled toward the broken window and she pushed against his arms that attempted to wrap around her. Her last weapon hung off her finger as their hands struggled against each other.

  “Bettina and Bosnan brainwashed you. They did the same thing to F—”

  Lady Cerasi kicked, loosening his grip. He grunted and thrusted himself into her chest, loosening her chest plate and sending them both over the edge.

  Rain beat her head and nearly blinded her, but before gravity took her too far, she grabbed the railing next to the window. She tried to shake
off Naos, who clung to her legs, while she put all of her upper body weight into climbing. Sora would have his weapon ready if she dove into the room again, so logic told her to return to the roof and locate a different position to kill the Catalan leader.

  She threw her arms on the surface above and pulled herself up, still swinging her legs to get rid of the fugitive below. However, as her stomach reached the rooftop, Naos jumped and grabbed the ledge. The pistol still managed to hang off her finger, so she grabbed it and fired.

  Naos yelped as a bolt hit his hand but leapt to the rooftop and landed on his feet. Another strike of lightning illuminated his exhausted, drenched face. While he desperately sucked air into his lungs, Lady Cerasi stood and backed away, training her pistol on him. She noticed the traces of smoke that emitted from the battle below the wide, empty rooftop.

  Naos staggered toward her and she fired again. The bolt hit his stomach, producing another yelp, but he rushed toward her again. Before her finger hit the trigger, he grabbed her loose chest plate.

  “Bettina tried to kill you because you wouldn’t let me die,” Naos said, gasping again and nearly falling onto her armor. “Now, you’re giving her what she’s always wanted.”

  Lady Cerasi’s fist slammed into his right cheek. Naos stumbled back but his grip on the chest plate tightened, ripping it away from Lady Cerasi. She fired her pistol but he raised her armor in time to absorb the shot, before spitting blood out of his mouth.

  Another flash lit up the planet. She noticed Queen Bettina’s shuttle sitting next to her own on the landing pad.

  Only the Queen mattered.

  Lady Cerasi fired, again hitting his hand. He dropped the armor and she charged, kicking his burnt stomach. Naos lost his footing and fell, crying out again, while she aimed the pistol at his head. This defector would suffer.

  Only the Queen’s orders mattered.

  Naos coughed, spitting out more blood. Rain still covered his face, but his eyes grew red. “Are…are you really going to do this? You don’t remember me? You don’t remember Scout?”

  Lady Cerasi only remembered the Queen and her words. Her finger neared the trigger.

  “I guess it is remarkable, Nait,” Naos said, swallowing and whispering. He closed his eyes. “Quite remarkable what she did to Tian.”

  She wanted to fire, but her finger couldn’t apply any pressure. The boy’s words paralyzed her entire body, unlike any words she heard before.

  Tian?

  She heard the voice of the drug lord speaking that name. She felt tears well up and she reflexively looked away from the boy, trying to distract herself by the flying lasers and lightning. However, her new feelings didn’t leave. She felt sadness, hatred, and anger. All feelings exploded in her chest and mind, consuming both.

  Lady Cerasi felt all of them toward her Queen. The only person who mattered.

  Queen Bettina. She had to submit to her orders. She had to kill the fugitives, regardless of their words.

  “Scout?” Naos said, crawling backward. He shuddered. “You…you’re remembering something, aren’t you?”

  Lady Cerasi fired but he rolled out of the way. She wanted to fire again but felt another surge of rage inside her mind. Rage toward her ruler.

  “Never let emotions dictate anything.”

  Naos pulled himself off the ground and she fired again. The defector had to suffer.

  He ducked, limping toward her. “The Scout that I know would know deep down that this isn’t right. I-I’ve doubted a lot, but I don’t want to doubt you anymore. You know that Queen Bettina is wrong.”

  “Never let anything hinder your knowledge of me.”

  Lady Cerasi punched the fugitive’s chest and saw the pain as his face contorted, but this time, he didn’t fall. He threw his hand forward and took hold of her arm, gripping it as tightly as he gripped her chest plate. Naos gasped and his cheeks reddened but he shoved her arm down, forcing the pistol to the ground. She wanted to exert strength and throw the weakened man away, but again, she felt the sadness.

  “You know me,” Naos said, frowning and inching closer. He trembled, but his face hovered inches away from hers. Lady Cerasi lifted her other fist, prepared to strike again.

  “I’m Naos. Blondie.”

  Blondie. That name caused her free arm to drop. That name seemed more familiar than Naos.

  “Your best friend.”

  Lady Cerasi paused, again noticing his red cheeks. They grew red from weariness, but when she saw the dimples, she saw laughter. She heard herself laughing and teasing. She remembered her ruler’s palace, feeling a sense of fondness but not because of Queen Bettina. She felt fondness because of Blondie and laughter that took place there.

  She felt a net between her fingers. She saw Blondie laying against a wall and saw a tear drop onto the steel floor from her own eye.

  “Blondie,” Lady Cerasi said, trembling. “Naos.”

  She did know this blonde-haired, blue-eyed boy.

  “Yes,” Naos said, smiling and nodding. His face still carried fear but his eyes grew more red. “It’s me, Scout. It’s me!”

  Emotion. She didn’t find comfort or familiarity in the display of emotion.

  “Remember your knowledge of combat and never let anything hinder that knowledge again.”

  She kicked his stomach and saw the shock in his eyes as he flew back and released her. She turned, stumbling away from the boy.

  She couldn’t know him. Lady Cerasi only knew Queen Bettina.

  18

  The blue orb escaped Selas’ rifle and exploded in-between two charging soldiers, sending them into the opposite walls of the hallway. More soldiers replaced the fallen two, pushing their way through the smoke. Fi jumped out from behind Selas and drilled six rapid shots into another, before he pulled her back to avoid the incoming red.

  Selas spotted more soldiers behind the new re-enforcements. The sight reminded him of Graig, which didn’t stand as a good sign.

  Kossk stood at the other side of the circular intersection, stabbing another soldier who attempted to breach their perimeter. Trika guided a few Catalan natives through a third, quieter passageway, while Natalia guarded an elevator inside the intersection and peered into the shaft below. The intersection held the elevator shaft entrance and branched into four separate corridors.

  “I think they’re about to come up,” Natalia said, exhaling. Selas heard the footsteps on the floor below and the hum of an elevator followed.

  Selas, Fi, and Kossk found the rest of the crew with ease, but defending the tower hadn’t proven as simple. The royal army swarmed all floors of the towers and the crew could only defend one place. Considering Fi’s return to combat and Trika’s stomach injury, it didn’t seem prudent to split.

  “Shoot the cables,” Fi said, resuming her defensive position behind Selas. He fired at the next pair of soldiers, although a shot grazed his shoulder. “We don’t have any other choice.”

  Natalia nodded, lifting her rifle and firing twice at each cable. Both snapped, releasing the elevator and causing it to plummet to the first floor. Selas hissed as another shot hit his shoulder and edged behind the nearest wall.

  “This isn’t a wise strategy,” Fi said, pursing her lips. “They’ll overwhelm us soon.”

  Selas nodded. Experience taught them both that lesson.

  “Senator,” Kasco said, jogging into the intersection from the fourth corridor. Selas assumed Sora and Naos remained in that direction. “Many of our systems are going offline. What shall we do?”

  “My advice is still to retreat. I’m sorry,” Natalia said, closing the shaft’s entrance. She frowned at Catalan’s new leader. “We’ve tried to get as many of your people toward the only area that soldiers haven’t taken. Go to them and lead them away.”

  “We have nowhere to g—”

  “We can’t hold this position for much longer,” Selas said, grimacing and shooting another orb into his corridor. Soon, that wouldn’t delay the soldiers. “Ondon will give y
ou refuge. Where are Sora and Naos?”

  “Lady Cerasi came back for me and Naos fought her. Their duel took them to the roof,” Kasco said, breathing heavily and moving toward the third corridor that Trika guarded. “Sora left to catch up with them so that she won’t return for me.”

  More footsteps echoed through the fourth corridor. While Selas kept his attention on his wrecked hall, Fi raised her pistol in that direction. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Jaskia and Nait rush into the intersection.

  “We have a much bigger problem,” Nait said, gasping and grabbing his chest. “The Queen just landed beside the Killer.”

  “Kasco, take our advice and go,” Trika said, nudging him into her hallway. “If Scout doesn’t kill you, Bettina will.”

  “The body of the Queen will pursue the body and mind of Scout,” Kossk hissed, eyeing his hall. That route would return them to the Killer. “It is up to our bodies to keep her from manipulating her mind further.”

  Selas fired another shot but didn’t watch its fruit. He turned his eyes to Fi, who didn’t change her expression or allow a muscle to quiver. Natalia released a raspy breath, glancing at Fi, who returned the look and nodded.

  “We owe her a visit,” she said, clearing her throat. “Let’s pay our respects.”

  “Yes,” Natalia said, inhaling. “Let’s.”

  “Li, Sem, hold this position as long as you can so that no one follows us. If you have to, retreat toward us,” Jaskia said, looking at the two children who entered behind her. They looked younger and the girl carried a hard expression. “Kurt and Jenn should give back-up soon.”

  “Finally,” Sem said, pointing her modified rifle toward Selas’ corridor. “A real challenge.”

  “You’ve got it, Jask,” Li said, taking Kossk’s position. “We’ll do our best!”

  “We’ll do more than that, kid,” Sem said, firing into the corridor. Purple cut off the red.

  Selas doubted the wisdom of leaving children alone in this battle, but he once would have doubted Scout’s ability and she stood as one of their largest threats. They didn’t have time to debate.