by Kyle Prue
Neil darted through the threshold and came face to face with an Imperial soldier. He clobbered him with the femur while he still had the element of surprise. The soldier’s helmet rang like a bell when Neil struck it and the guard collapsed. Neil grabbed his sword and surveyed the beach.
Two Imperial ships were right outside the stone teeth of the island and several rowboats transported soldiers to the mainland. Alex was knee-deep in water and disposing of soldiers left and right, but they looked close to ganging up on him. Mama Tridenti was fighting three guards on the sand near the fighting pit. He looked around for Serena but she was nowhere to be found. “Mamba!” Mama Tridenti screamed. He turned to her. “Serena is wounded and being chased through the swamp! She needs help!” She grunted as she fended off yet another soldier ganging up on her.
Neil wanted to ask her why she’d had a sudden change of heart, but he knew there wasn’t time. Even if she believed that he was a spy she couldn’t risk leaving her daughter alone. He darted around the side of the mansion and through the trees of the swamp. He could hear Serena faintly singing through the underbrush and he tried to resist turning into putty. He reached the area where she was and cut down one of the soldiers who was cornering her. She was pinned against a tree, swinging a small dagger to fend off the soldiers. Her voice was growing fainter and the soldiers looked like they were regaining their motor skills. One of the guards turned his attention to Neil and Neil disposed of him quickly. The other was getting dangerously close to Serena. Neil tackled him from the side. He didn’t put up much of a fight and it was clear that he was still recovering.
Neil was just about to run to Serena, but the guard he’d tackled regained his wits and swung his armored fist against Neil’s face. An edge found Neil’s cheekbone and it sustained a deep cut. Neil rolled off and winced in pain. The soldier stood and raised his fists.“You Lightborns are going to get what’s coming to you,” he spat.
“Probably,” Neil said. “But not from you.”
The soldier swung at Neil and he dodged it handily. That was the advantage to being without armor. The soldier swung a few more times unsuccessfully, so he lunged for his discarded sword. Neil didn’t have time to stop him. He backed up until he was against a palm tree. He had an idea. The solder rushed him and swung the sword without fully planting his feet. Neil ducked as it imbedded into the palm tree. In the same motion he spun around and slammed the guard by the back of his head into the sword hilt. The guard’s eyes lost focus and he collapsed. Neil ran to Serena. “Can you hear me?” he asked.
She was pale. He realized that she had a deep wound in her stomach. “The sea…” she managed before she lost consciousness.
Neil began to sweat. He knew he couldn’t carry her all the way to the water before she succumbed to her wounds. Unless… “Serena,” he said trying to spur her awake. It did no good.
The guard who Neil had knocked unconscious began to stir and another plan arose in his mind. He glanced down at the bracelet attached to his arm and knew that his only hope was removing it. He pulled a sword off of a soldier’s body and slid it across the swamp floor to the awakening soldier. The soldier looked at it skeptically and grabbed the sword as he stood. “Big mistake,” the soldier said.
Neil was hoping that he was wrong. As the soldier swung at him he leaned back and raised his wrist. The sword connected with Neil’s iron bracelet and the sound of the clash echoed throughout the swamp. Despite the sound it didn’t break. The soldier kicked Neil to the ground and brought the sword up as if to cut Neil down the middle. At the last second Neil grabbed his hand and held it tight. The sword connected with the bracelet squarely and it fractured. As the bracelet broke, Neil felt a surge of power rush through his hands and he launched a fireball at the solder. It sent him flying off into the distance, and Neil knew he wouldn’t be a problem anymore. Neil scooped up Serena in his arms and channeled all his energy in a way he never had before. Fire burst from his feet and launched the two of them into the air. Neil directed them as best he could until he was sure they’d land in the ocean. He surrendered to his dizziness and his fire extinguished. The two plummeted into the water and Neil sank like a rock. He tried to fight, but the energy used had exhausted him. His last thought as the sea consumed him was a single hope: that it had been enough.
Chapter Sixty-Six
BRIGHTBOW
CARLIN FILUS
Carlin slammed his fist against the floor and screamed for the tenth time. He’d lost the Celerius girl. Again. “Sir,” a soldier whispered as he approached. Carlin stood slowly. “Orders dictate that we must bring you to the nearest military outpost immediately. Furthermore, if we don’t get Virgil to a doctor soon he’s going to die.”
Carlin turned to face him. He grabbed the soldier’s head in his hands and with a clean twist the young man fell to the ground, dead. “Leave me,” Virgil moaned. “They escaped because of me. This is what I deserve.”
Carlin stared at him. Virgil was slumped up against the wall bleeding profusely from his chest wound. “What happened?” Carlin demanded.
“We went to search a basement,” Virgil blubbered. “Someone was down there waiting for us. He told us we were a danger to someone he was protecting. We didn’t stand a chance. I couldn’t see anything. I couldn’t fight him.”
Carlin’s blood went cold. He still remembered his encounter with the masked man months ago in Altryon. Was the man protecting Lilly Celerius? That was the only thing that made sense. “Leave me,” Virgil whispered.
“No,” Carlin decided. “I won’t let you die, Lieutenant.”
“Back to the outpost for medical attention!” he called to his men waiting outside the door. “Make sure Virgil doesn’t bleed out on the way there.”
A few soldiers ran in and pulled Virgil through the doors. Another came to offer Carlin assistance, but he waved him away. Carlin placed his face in his hands and breathed deeply. After a few moments he heard laughter from across the room. Carlin tried to tune it out but it only grew louder. Carlin lowered his hands and glared at the Hyena.
“She got the jump on me,” the Hyena cackled through broken teeth. “She literally got the jump on me.”
Carlin limped over. “What’s so funny?”
“She got the jump on me. She jumped on my head.” The Hyena chuckled. He gestured to the floor beneath him. “You ought to try this marble floor, General. It needs seasoning, but it tastes better than you might expect.”
Carlin grabbed Lilly’s discarded sword and placed it up against the Hyena’s neck. The Hyena stared at him quizzically as if he were waiting for the punch line to the joke. The Hyena’s broken smile faded as he realized that Carlin was serious. “You’re gonna kill me? You really want to find out what the Imperial Doctor will do to you for that?”
“No,” Carlin said. “Lilly Celerius killed you. She kicked out all of your teeth and then she slit your throat.”
The Hyena chuckled. “Oh…” he whispered. “I get it.”
Carlin stared at him. The Hyena burst into uncontrollable laughter and shook his head at Carlin. “You do everything you do to make your father proud right? You do it to make him love you, right?” He measured his next words carefully. “You can’t pay for love in blood, trust me. I’ve spilled my fair share. And you especially can’t buy love from someone who’s in the… state that your father is in.”
“What do you mean?”
“I’ve met your father, Carlin. I came when the Doctor met him quite recently. And I get it. I get the joke that you don’t get yet.”
Carlin pressed and blood began to dribble from the Hyena’s neck. The Hyena continued to laugh. “I get the joke, General! And it’s funny. It might be the funniest thing about you. You don’t get it yet. But you will. You’re going to cut through this nation with a bloody sword only to realize that the joke was on you the whole time.”
The Hyena laughed again and Carlin stared at him. After a few moments the General couldn’t contain his fury. “Stop!�
�� he demanded.
The Hyena couldn’t stop though. He was far too satisfied with himself. Eventually Carlin just wanted the sound to stop clawing at his eardrums. He wanted silence. With a swift flick of Carlin’s wrist the laughter stopped. The Hyena’s head rolled across the floor, even with his teeth shattered and his eyes empty, he looked absolutely thrilled. You don’t get it yet. But you will. The words continued to bounce around in his brain.
Carlin dropped the sword on the Hyena’s body and walked out the exit of the hall. He rejoined his men and gave the silent order to move out. Carlin silently cursed their order to protect him at all costs, as it would deter him from chasing after the Celerius and the hostages. As he and his men exited the city he receded into his mind, trying desperately to understand the joke that the Hyena was referring to. What could possibly be so funny? “Are you all right, sir?” asked one of his sergeants.
“I’m fine,” Carlin said. “Just some stupid joke.” He stepped onto his carriage and prepared for the journey back to the outpost. “It wasn’t even funny,” he whispered, more to himself than to anyone else.
You don’t get it yet. But you will.
Chapter Sixty-Seven
OCEAN’S JAW
NEIL VAPROS
Neil awoke before his eyes opened. He could feel the sand caressing his body as if he were a baby and the beach was his blanket. He awoke fully and knew at once that along with his powers, his memory was returning piece by piece. The bracelet must have stopped his mind from coming together fully after his materialization. Serena lay next to him. Relief crossed her face when he looked up and met her eyes. “Looks like those swimming lessons didn’t sink in,” Neil whispered through his salty lips.
“Ha. Sink,” she said. “Get it?”
“Boo,” Neil said as he rolled forward and into a crouching position. “Let’s get back to the front of the island. Your family might still be in danger.”
She shook her head. “Hear any cannon fire? I guarantee that there are two new Imperial ships at the bottom of the ocean.”
“What if they’re done firing because they won?”
“Trust me, Mama Tridenti would have used her advanced ability if things were that dire.”
They trudged back to the front of the island. Serena had been right. According to Alex, shortly after Neil ran after Serena, Mama Tridenti created a whirlpool that spun one of the ships and it actually fired on the other ship accidentally. Then she’d pulled both under. Neil made a silent resolution to get back on her good side. The three of them reentered the house. Mama Tridenti was standing in the same place she’d been doing yoga on the day that Neil arrived. This time she was standing upright with clenched fists. From what he could see, her skin was turning red with fury. A paper was clenched in her hand. Earnest Haxon was lying at her feet sobbing. “It looks like we know how you escaped your cell, Mamba,” she said, voice booming.
“Please…” Earnest whispered. “I’m not—“
Mama Tridenti stepped on his neck and his words ceased. Without turning to the face the three teens, she held up the crumpled paper in her hands. “I had his room searched when I found out that he tried to kill Mamba. It’s a letter to the nearest military outpost. We’ve found our snake.”
Earnest squirmed desperately and small bursts of air escaped his lungs as he attempted to breathe. Mama Tridenti removed her foot and grabbed him by the neck with her free hand. He squirmed and tried to escape as she lifted him above the ground, but it was no use. Her grip was iron. Eventually he stopped and she dropped his body to the floor. Neil watched his body for any traces of life. There were none.
“Nasty business,” Mama Tridenti said. “But he knew the risks when he decided to betray me.”
She stepped over his body and through the doors to the dining room. The remaining three spent a moment staring at Earnest Haxon’s body. “I guess it goes without saying that we’re sorry for accusing you,” Alex said.
Neil gulped. “I’m just glad to not be him. Are we just gonna leave him there?”
Serena crossed her arms uncomfortably. “Mama Tridenti will want people to see him as they come inside. He’s an example now.”
Neil stared at the body until Alex ushered him along into the dining room. Despite the damage to the island, apparently regrouping was most important. Mama Tridenti must have had something to say. They shuffled in along with the other survivors of the Empire’s attack. It looked like all the Tridenti were still alive, not surprising given their powers, but five crewmen were gone, not including Earnest and his lackeys. So the island was down eight people. The rest of the islanders joined them in the dining room and sat, waiting for Mama Tridenti to speak. “The shore holds strong…” she said as if in a trance. “That’s our purpose. We live by it. Keep anyone from monopolizing the sea and attacking the mainland from it. Without us the demons could fire on Misty Hollow or Shipwreck Bay with the full force of their cannons. Our purpose is for Volteria.”
Neil looked over and saw that Serena and Alex were nodding passionately. Their mother had the ability to stir something powerful in them. “That was always our purpose,” Mama Tridenti continued. “But we have to ask ourselves, with the Empire in its current state, will the shore ever be safe? How long will it be until they come back with more ships? Can we stand up to their numbers? They’ve always been our enemies, and time has only made them more aggressive.”
An unnatural silence settled over the room. Everyone was nervous. Alex and Serena stopped nodding. “I have made a decision about the future of this family,” Mama Tridenti said. “The Empire crossed a line by placing a spy in my home. They crossed a line by injuring my daughter. Tomorrow we make preparations to cripple their navy at its source. There are ports connected to one side of their Industrial City. They will be underwater within a month.”
“What about the shore?” Neil heard Alex whisper to himself.
“So long as that Empire exists we will never be able to truly realize our potential,” Mama Tridenti said as she pounded her fist into the wooden dinner table. “We will crush their ports and starve them out. Maybe the Venator would even agree to a truce. Either way, it’s time to expand. For my children and for my family, I will create an empire of my own. The shore is not enough anymore. When we finish with the Empire of Altryon I assure you, that all of the realm will be safe, even if I have to sink their entire dammed city to assure it.”
The room was silent. She smiled distantly and left the hall with their new mantra. Alex stared at the table as if his world were falling apart and Serena looked off as if in a trance. Neil couldn’t blame them. Who could be expected to react rationally in a situation like this one? Their entire purpose had been ripped from them and replaced with a far more ambitious one. And it didn’t even look like they wanted it.
Chapter Sixty-Eight
ABINGTON
DARIUS TAURLUM
Darius, Anastasia, and Bianca made it to Abington at the end of the predicted two weeks. As the days of travel went on, Anastasia seemed to come down with something again. She coughed more often and slept longer. Dark bags developed under her eyes and her complexion worsened. She denied it, of course, but it was almost exactly as it had been before. Darius interpreted it as a sickness that developed the closer she got to the Doctor. Maybe it was induced by panic. He was sure if panic could make him sick, he’d be right there with her.
They bought two rooms at an inn and turned them into their armories. Anastasia and Bianca sharpened knives and spikes and trained while Darius went into town for armor. He made sure to keep his head down. Abington, after all, had the strongest Imperial presence. After haggling with a blacksmith for almost an hour, he was able to obtain a breastplate that would hopefully cover his weak navel. Once back at the inn, he butchered a plate of leather armor to make protection for his flanks. After living in the Taurlum mansion for so many years, he’d learned everything that could be learned about armor. His craftsmanship was admirable and he felt confident in his c
hances against the Marksman. He hoped that the thick strips of leather could stop a bullet. He left his room and went into the one next door. Anastasia and Bianca were armed to the teeth with sharp instruments and fierce grimaces of determination. “Looks like we’re ready,” Darius said. “Now the only question is when to attack.”
Anastasia wrapped her chain around her arm experimentally. “The best time to ambush is just before dawn. It’s when people sleep deepest.”
“He knows we’re coming,” Bianca pointed out. “The Marksman must have told him. No one will be sleeping.”
“Still,” Anastasia said. “That would give us time to rest. If there’s a chance that we could catch him off his guard, it’s worth taking.”
“All right,” Bianca said. “Before dawn it is.”
They broke silently and Darius returned to his room. He could see the sun beginning to set, and the fading light of dusk passed over his face. It had been a long time since he’d taken time to actually appreciate anything. In his first days outside the wall he’d been awestruck by unobstructed views. He’d spent hours in the dead of night watching the rolling plains and mountains, perplexed by the absence of a giant wall closing him in. Now all he ever thought about was rescuing Rhys and killing the Doctor. Of course, Anastasia also drifted into his mind every so often.
He heard the door open behind him and gripped the windowsill, ready to tear it off and pummel the intruder. “My, you look tense,” Anastasia said.
