Dead City

by Debbie Cassidy

  “Oh.” I loosened my grip on his fingers, but he held on.

  “Of course I’m coming with you,” he said dryly. “Some backup I’d be if I didn’t.”

  He released my hand only to move his touch to the small of my back. We headed across the rise together, and despite his lapse back into sarcasm, there was the confident feeling in the pit of my stomach that if I made the effort, then the councilman would slowly open up to me.

  The stars were diamonds winking down on me from the vast expanse of an inky black sky. Micha had lit two lamps on either side of us on the rise to keep the darkness at bay, but the world below was lit by silvery moonlight. Half the crops had been gathered and transported back to the Hive, and the rest would be reaped tomorrow. Everyone had retreated to the bunker under the barn. But being underground didn’t appeal right now. We’d been up here for an hour, chatting, bantering, just enjoying each other’s company. He was easy to talk to, too easy to talk to, and I couldn’t get enough of him.

  Micha sat with his legs stretched out and his palms braced behind him, head tilted to the stars. “Sometimes, I fly up there at night, just to be closer to the moon.”

  “It must be so freeing to be able to fly.”

  He turned his head to look at me. “It would be more fun with someone to share it with. Unfortunately, the Draconi females have no time for a half Shedim, half Draconi who can’t shift, and my wings aren’t strong enough to carry anyone. In my world, I have shortcomings. Thank God I can cloak. It gives me an edge, especially when sneaking up on people.”

  A thought occurred to me. “Wait, have you ever cloaked around me?”

  He studied my face. “What? You mean, like watched you shower and stuff?”

  My cheeks grew warm.

  He grinned. “Nah. I don’t use my powers for evil.” His grin dropped slightly. “I figure if you want me to watch you shower, you’ll ask.”

  He was teasing, of course, but there was that gleam in his eyes, the tugging, warm gleam that made the breathless feeling come to life in my chest.

  “Do you want to watch me shower?” Shit, what was I doing?

  His gaze dropped to my lips. “Only if we can snuggle afterward.”

  We were swimming into intimate territory, non-friend territory. I needed to pull back, to make a joke and ease the tension, but my pulse was fluttering, and my breath was coming faster, and words that shouldn’t be said were forming on my lips as if of their own accord.

  “Don’t.” Micha leaned in and pressed his forehead to mine. “Let’s … let’s just stay like this. If you say anything else, then you’ll compromise yourself, then you’ll feel guilty, and you’ll be forced to push me away. Let’s just stay like this.”

  There was a lump forming in my throat, and my neck ached with resisting the urge to tilt my chin and claim his mouth. What was happening? How could I be feeling this way? I loved Finn.

  Finn.

  For the first time in my life, I understood it … How someone could want more than one person, how they could crave more than one person. But that wasn’t who I’d ever wanted to be. I wanted to be a one-man woman.

  But why? the annoying voice in the back of my head asked. Love isn’t finite. You won’t run out if you give too much away. Wait, this wasn’t the annoying voice. This was something different. Mine but not mine. So why, it asked again.

  Because …

  Micha cupped my cheek and pressed his lips to my crown. “Don’t. Don’t sweat it, Echo. Let’s just go in and—"

  “Snuggle?”

  His throat bobbed, and he brushed the tip of his nose against mine, his breath teasing my lips. “Maybe not tonight. I can’t trust myself tonight.”

  Neither could I, because right now my mouth was inching toward his, our breath mingling.

  Something whizzed past our faces.

  Micha and I jerked away from each other and stared at the metallic flying machine. It was disc-like and silver and buzzing. It flew near and then back as if zooming in and then panning out.

  Slowly, carefully, I inched my hand across the ground to reach for my staff. The disc turned its attention on Micha, and then it lit up red along its seam. It was going to fire.

  The staff was in my hand, and green power shot out of the crystal, taking down the disc in a puff of smoke.

  Micha was on his feet and hauling me up. “We have to get to the bunker. Now.”

  But the stars were moving toward us, rushing at us, growing into discs as they beelined for us, and then they lit up crimson.

  Chapter 9

  Hunter

  Spy for her? Who does she think she is? But here I am, in the nephilim chamber, searching for the hairy wolf she’s set on giving her heart to. I find him easily simply by visualizing his stubbled face. And, ooh, it looks like I’ve stumbled on a juicy scene. I hover against the ceiling of what seems to be a study and watch.

  “You want to do what?” Councilman Carmach says. He isn’t angry, he looks shocked more than anything. “Is this because of the human girl you’ve been seeing?”

  “She’s more than just human,” Finn says. “She’s a guardian.”

  There is silence as the alpha absorbs this. “Echo Patch?”

  “Yes.” Finn doesn’t meet his father’s eyes. He isn’t a fool. He knows never to look his alpha in the eyes. “I love her, and I want to be with her. I want you to let me go. I want to leave the pack.”

  Wait for it …Here comes the explosion. I would rub my hands with glee if I had any … but wait. What is this? The alpha is patting his son on the shoulder. Where are the claws? Where are the fangs and snarls and the plain simple no?

  “I understand how you must be feeling,” Carmach says. “It’s a heavy burden we bear, and I’ve been especially hard on you, my only son. I’ve alienated you and pushed you away. I don’t blame you for looking elsewhere for comfort and acceptance. But this is your home. We are your family, and we love you.”

  Finn’s shoulders have tensed. Ooooo, this is good. So much more effective than aggression. This alpha knows his moves, the manipulative bastard.

  “I’m sorry, Father. I … I don’t want to hurt you, but I can’t live a lie. If I stay, I’ll never be happy. Please, can you arrange the exile ceremony?”

  “Exile …” Carmach shakes his head. “You do realize if you leave, the alphahood will pass to your cousin, Roan?”

  “He’s a good wolf.”

  “Too good. He’s weak.”

  “But you can teach him what he needs to know. He’s still young.”

  The alpha makes a sound of exasperation in his throat. “I’m afraid some things cannot be taught. You have the makings of a strong alpha, Finn. Roan does not, and going forward, we are going to need strength. I didn’t want to burden you with this. I wanted to allow you your youth, some illusion of freedom, but I see now I should have been forthcoming with you from the start. There is dissension amongst the packs. Orville, the Crescent pack leader, wants to stage an uprising against the Protectorate. He believes the Lupinata should be in control of the Hive.”

  “What?” Finn looks shocked, and the alpha’s smile is wry.

  “Not many people remember; most that were there are dead now. But this has happened before, only that time it was the Sanguinata who staged a coup. The House of Night. They were the biggest House at the time. There was bloodshed, and awful decisions were made. We fought alongside the Protectorate, and when the dust settled, House Night was gone.”

  “You think Orville will stage a coup? That he’ll try to take the Hive?”

  “Next to me, he’s the strongest alpha. Our pack is the only thing giving him pause right now. Son, I have asked you to do many things as your alpha. But now, I ask as your father. Please, stay.”

  I can see the conflict on Finn’s face as his heart wars with his mind, and I see the moment in which the decision is made. I can’t watch, and I don’t hear it, because, in this moment, all I can hear is the shatter of Echo’s heart.

 
; Chapter 10

  The discs hovered a few meters away from Micha and me. They each sported a strip of crimson, but they didn’t fire. It was as if they were waiting for something, but sod waiting. I swirled my staff, and the world fell into an emerald haze where only my targets glowed red, and then I fired. It was my rebound shot, and it hit the nearest disc and bounced to the next and the next, taking out five of them in one go. But more were on the horizon, and the ground below us was rippling with activity.

  “We have to warn the others.” Micha grabbed my hand and tugged. “Come on.”

  We ran down the rise, sprinting toward the barn with everything we had, but we never made it. A scuttler landed in front of us with a crash that shook the earth. I pushed Micha back and blasted the sucker. It went down, but another took its place. The power shot out of me in quick, hard streams, taking them down as they came at me, one after the other, inexhaustive.

  But they weren’t firing. Why weren’t they firing? Something was wrong. And where were the discs? Why weren’t they attacking? The scuttlers beelined for me, hitting me again and again and going down easily with each blast of arcana.

  The power inside me felt strong and sure, flowing through me like a rapid river. Micha ducked and dove out of the way of the metal monsters. But there were too many, and more were crawling across the fields toward us like a lethal infection.

  We couldn’t fight them off alone. Micha slashed with his arcletic baton, stunning the scuttlers long enough for me to take them down with arcana. And then a roar ripped the air. Lyrian was a black shadow against the night, a fire-breathing shadow that spewed a jet of flames that hit the ground a few meters ahead of us, creating a wall of fire to cut off our attackers.

  “Watch the crops. Don’t burn the crops!” I waved my hands in the air. Lyrian turned his head toward me. Had he heard? Stars rushed him from his right.

  The discs. “Lyrian, watch out!”

  He swerved in time to avoid a flurry of lasers.

  “No!” I ran back up the rise, legs pumping hard, needing to get high enough to blast the fuckers off Lyrian’s tail.

  He swerved again and dove to avoid the blasts, but it was only a matter of time before he was hit. This spot would have to do. I twirled and jabbed the staff at the air, shooting short, sharp bursts of power at the discs chasing Lyrian.

  “More incoming!” Micha shouted from behind me.

  Figures poured out of the barn, and dragons burst up into the air.

  “Micha, you need to tell the Draconi not to burn the crops. No fire on the crops.”

  “I can’t leave you,” he yelled back.

  “I’m good. But if those crops burn, we all starve. Go.”

  With a final torn look, he turned and launched himself into the air; his wings sprouted on cue, and then he was flying up to meet his kin.

  The scuttlers below were still trapped behind the dragon fire Lyrian had created, so I focused on the discs, taking them out with staff blasts that knocked them from the air. Below, Protectorate prepared to fight off the scuttlers as the flames began to die. I needed to get back down there.

  I made to turn away from the rise when the glint of silver in the tree line caught my attention. No … It couldn’t be. They burst out of the trees and dove into the crops—a new wave of scuttlers, and they were headed this way. My heart sank. There was no way I could fend off them all.

  We had to retreat, there was no other option. Below me, the flames died, and the first wave of scuttlers hit the Protectorate again.

  I barreled down the rise to join the others. Deacon shot arcletic arrows from the top of the barn, stunning scuttler after scuttler. Micha landed beside me, joining me in my sprint to the flat land, and then we were in the midst of laser fire. My body went into autopilot, rolling and shooting, spinning and shooting. Micha was by my side, his huge frame smashing the scuttlers with the baton that lit them up blue, and I finished them off with a blast of green. We made a good team. The scuttlers were going down, but too many more were headed our way. My limbs ached, and my blood rushed in my ears. How much longer could I keep this up? I geared the staff up and sent out another blast, but it was more of a sputter that just about hit the scuttler.

  Micha’s eyes were wide as they met mine. He was thinking the same thing I was. I was running out of juice.

  “They’re going to keep coming,” he said. “There’s nothing you can do here now.”

  “What?”

  “Reinforce the fire wall!” he shouted up into the air, his voice a boom.

  One of the Draconi obliged, cutting off a wave of scuttlers. There was the risk the fire would spread if the wind changed direction, but if we didn’t hold them off, we’d all die.

  Deacon leapt off the roof and joined us. “We need to get her out of here.”

  “What?” I looked from Deacon to Micha. “We all need to leave now.”

  Deacon and Micha exchanged glances, and then Deacon spoke. “The crop is essential. We can’t abandon it.”

  “But I’m out of juice. I can’t do anything.” Frustration was a tight band around my chest.

  “You don’t need to,” Micha said. “We have a secondary protocol in place—an EMP blaster. It will take them out long enough for us to gather the rest of the crops.”

  “Then why the heck haven’t you used it already?”

  “Because it’s a one-shot deal. There’s only enough power in the generator to use it once. We’ve never had to use it before, and once we do, it will be dead.”

  This was good. We could work with this. “Then let me stay and help.”

  “No. You’re our only guardian, we can’t risk anything happening to you.”

  I studied his face, reading the truth in the lines of tension around his mouth. “You’re not sure it will even work, are you? You’ve never used it before.”

  His expression was somber. “This is what we do, Echo. Right now, you’re a liability, a distraction we don’t need. You need to go.”

  He was being harsh to get rid of me, but he was right. If I stayed, they’d be focused on keeping me safe instead of saving themselves.

  “Get back to the Hive and charge up,” Deacon said.

  “I’m coming back.”

  Deacon’s smile was tight. “Then we’ll see you soon.”

  Micha waved his arm in the air. “Lyrian.”

  The huge obsidian dragon landed a moment later, shaking the ground with his bulk.

  Micha scooped me up and placed me on the Draconi’s back. “Get her back to the Hive.”

  “Wait.” I wasn’t sure what I was asking him to wait for, or what I needed to do or say, but my heart was pounding, and a terrible foreboding was blooming in my stomach. I leaned down and reached out to touch Micha’s cheek. “Please … Please, be safe.”

  He cupped the back of my neck, and then his lips were pressed to mine. Heat bloomed between us, sudden and dizzying, the kind that made me want to melt into him, to slide off Lyrian and into Micha’s arms, but then his lips were gone. He was backing up, shouting orders to the Protectorate. He was gone, slipping into commander mode. There was no time to say or do anything else because Lyrian was rising into the air.

  I leaned forward, gripping him with my thighs and hooking my fingers into his scales, and then we were shooting up into the night air.

  Lyrian flew like the wind, his body a bullet cutting through the air. His wings only needed to beat once every ten to fifteen seconds, and the rest of the time, he was a soaring knife. I kept my eyes closed, the breath tight in my chest because Micha was still back there. Deacon was still back there. All those Protectorate were in danger. I needed to get to the Hive and recharge quickly.

  I’d been able to use arcana without the staff and its crystal when we’d done the Run, why was I flagging now? It made no sense. Up until now, I’d avoided thinking too hard on the how and why of my ability to directly channel arcana. But it was time to consider the facts. I’d fallen into the chasm and then developed the abilit
y to channel arcana. Maybe being in the chasm had somehow charged my body, enabling it to use arcana outside on the Run? Maybe I needed to spend time around the crystal to charge up just like the staff had? I needed to figure it out because lives could depend on it.

  I’d failed today. I’d run out of juice. Too many scuttlers had come at me, and I’d been forced to use a lot of power in a short space of time and … Oh, shit. That was it. Genesis had done it on purpose because he knew me … he knew I’d survived, that I was different because … because he’d spoken to me through the soul eater that had tried to kill me in the rotunda. It had to be him. He knew I was different because I hadn’t died. He’d sent those scuttlers at me today to force me to use my arcana. He’d wanted to drain me. The first wave hadn’t even fired any lasers. The fucker had planned this. And if he’d planned it, then he had to know I’d be forced to retreat.

  The hairs on the back of my neck stood to attention a moment before Lyrian banked sharply to the left. I cracked an eye open to see red lasers cut through the air in the periphery of my vision.

  Shit. Oh, shit.

  Lyrian banked hard right and then flew upward, gaining altitude before swooping down fast. I saw the forest pass below us through slitted eyes—a dark mass of inky green. We weren’t headed back to the Hive. He was flying over the forest.

  Of course. He wouldn’t want to lead the discs to our hideout. That was as good as sending Genesis a written invitation. Where, then?

  I caught a glimpse of an urban wasteland, towering buildings that were broken and eyeless—the Arcana towers, the broken empire where the Arcana had once ruled the city. I closed my eyes before the wind could dry out my eyeballs and laid my cheek flat on Lyrian’s back. His wings beat twice, and then we were picking up speed, swerving and ducking in the air to avoid the blasts.

  Long minutes passed, in which my heart tried its best to burst out of my chest, and then a low baying tone surrounded us. It came again and again. Lyrian … Lyrian was making that sound, and it was answered a moment later by roars.