Rex Aftermath (Elei's Chronicles)

by Thoma, Chrystalla

  She made a show of rubbing her nose against the morning chill, hiding her expression. “You dare accuse me of a lowly mortal’s doubts?”

  She waited and heard his breath quicken, then a soft snort.

  “Are you poking fun at me, Hera?”

  She shrugged. “I do my best.”

  He laughed, the infectious, clear laughter she remembered from their first meeting at Calydon, before they’d crossed to Ert and explored the tunnels. It made her smile.

  “You’ve changed,” he said, jabbing a finger at her, through his grin was wide. “When I met you, you were a serious girl.”

  “You want to test my seriousness, mortal?” Hera snarled and was rewarded with more laughter.

  Gods, if only they could stay there, forget about the war machine and the upcoming battle. She’d never felt so afraid in her life. Had never had so much to lose.

  And then she wondered if she’d still feel that way once the effect of the pills wore off. If she’d stop being so human, and if she would not give a damn if she never heard Kalaes’ teasing again, or Mantis’ laughter again.

  Or Sacmis’ voice...

  “Even if we enter Dakru City,” she said, “even if luck is on our side and we take the whole government hostage, how long do you think we will last? They’ll still have Bone Tower, the heart of the Gultur faith and military. My race will not capitulate while Bone Tower stands.”

  “We’ll wear them down,” Mantis said cautiously. “We’ll capture the Palace of Dakru City. Surely that will break the regime’s confidence?”

  Hera patted her hair that was braided and wrapped around her head; battle hairdo. “It might.” Or not. She frowned. “One war machine will not win the war. What else do you have up your sleeve?”

  He slid her a sidelong glance, challenging. “I have the best army in the world.”

  She rolled her eyes. “Come on, Mantis. They’re untrained kids.”

  Gods, let him have thought this through.

  “I’ve been training them for years.” He rubbed his chin. He had not even grown a beard yet. “They’re ready. We’re ready.”

  She waited.

  “Chill, Hera.” He actually patted her arm and she fought not to flinch, she was so strung up with nerves and misgivings. “You don’t think I can pull this off?”

  Hurt flashed through his gaze when she did not deny it.

  “Nothing personal,” Hera said, feeling like a thug. “I trust no-one.”

  He smiled at that. “Then let me reassure you: everything’s in place for the attack.” He leaned closer, his pale hair, so much like Sacmis’, brushing her cheek. He smelled of male musk and bitter dakron fumes. Utterly mortal. Human. “My people are inside the capital, inside the Palace, waiting. My people are hiding in the outskirts of Dakru City, with stolen aircars and all the weapons we could gather, grenades and guns and rockets, waiting. They’ve been waiting for my signal ever since you emerged from the underworld. It’s all set up. We only need to open the gates and set the cannons of the war machine on the Palace. The regime won’t know what hit them.”

  Hera swallowed hard. “Good,” she said.

  “We were prepared to launch the attack without the benefit of the war machine. We’re been working on it for years.”

  Yeah, he’d thought it through. She relaxed more as they watched daylight splinter the gray of the horizon, filling the cracks with gold.

  “What worries me,” Mantis said quietly, “is Bone Tower and its fleet.”

  Hera nodded. “The Attalids.”

  “I heard they can blow up a war machine, or a whole city.”

  “If the distraction does not work, if they see us coming and send for the Attalids, we might as well shoot ourselves and be done with it.”

  Mantis was quiet for a while. “We’re a ragtag army,” he finally said, his eyes dark in the gray light. “I wish we could strike Bone Tower; I wish we had a fleet of our own to destroy their aircraft and bring down the temple.” He shrugged. “We’ll do all we can and it’ll have to be enough.”

  “I do not doubt we have to do this,” Hera whispered, turning her gaze back to the distant mountains. “But I do not like it.”

  “Neither do I, m’lady.” Mantis’ voice turned heavy with sadness. He ambled to stand next to her and laid a hand on her shoulder. “Let’s hope it will soon be over.”

  One way or another, Hera thought and sighed.

  Chapter Seven

  “We’ll find you guns,” Dain said, watching the others from under lowered lashes. He tucked a strand of dirty blond hair behind an ear. “I can get you automatics and a couple machine guns.”

  “Sounds good,” Zoe said, nodding. “What else is on offer?”

  Elei rubbed his temples. It was early afternoon. It had to be cold in the room, because Alendra was shivering, but he couldn’t feel it. He wasn’t convinced about Dain’s innocence and Rex was still doing a war dance inside his skull.

  “I have one condition. No young ones will participate in this.” Dain glanced at Elei, then back at Zoe, avoiding Kalaes’ gaze. “I’ll be the only one joining you from my gang.”

  “No young ones,” Alendra repeated, her tone quieter and friendlier than it had ever been with Dain before. “We said so.”

  Dain narrowed his eyes, hand toying with an unlit ama cig. “Then we’re on.” He tapped the cig on the floor. “I keep my promises, too. To you, and to my kids.”

  The pounding in Elei’s head went down a notch and he lowered his hands. He kinda liked Dain’s dedication to his gang kids, he had to grudgingly admit, and with that Rex backed down, leaving him blinking.

  He’d been getting used to the constant headache, and now it was practically gone. Gods, he wasn’t putting his faith in this Dain, was he? The guy had all but threatened Kalaes, and just because he cared for his gang didn’t mean he was off the hook. Did it?

  Rex stayed relatively quiet, tucked in the back of his mind, a soft hammering behind his eye the only indication it wasn’t entirely happy.

  Then again, without the medicine, maybe it was just an indication that Rex was getting stronger.

  Kalaes was rubbing his blue eye as if it hurt.

  “We heard from your contact, Iliathan,” Zoe said. “I sent two kids to check with him. He says he’s ready for us, cracked the codes and can get us inside.” She slanted a look at Elei. “He also asked if you guys were okay.”

  Yeah. Was Iliathan concerned and blameless, or pretending?

  “I can find you grenades,” Mitt said, pale green eyes observing them all. “Explosive and smoke bombs. Also pyros.”

  “What’s that?” Elei muttered.

  “Bottles with dakron powder and a wick. You light them and...” Mitt fluttered his hands, “... boom.”

  Elei flinched — and why in the hells did Rex take his reflex reaction as an excuse to rise again? He swallowed a groan.

  Kalaes nodded. “Sounds good.”

  “I s’pose I can find us some guns, too,” a tall girl with a long ponytail said. Elei couldn’t remember her name. “The Alleycats are with you.”

  “And the aircars we need?” one of Mitt’s girls asked.

  “I know a poosker near Aerica. He promised me three cars.” Zoe gently shoved a tiny boy toward the other kids who huddled around a short-haired girl, playing with pieces of paper and nepheline. The girl gathered the child close and whispered something in his ear.

  Had Albi held him like that? Elei remembered how strong her arms had felt around him, all the way to the end. He wrenched his gaze away.

  Three aircars. They should do. It wasn’t like they would be moving from Artemisia.

  “I can find us some more grenades,” another girl said, short and chubby with dark pigtails. “And handguns.”

  “The Gutter Gang will look for fuel,” a girl with a shaved head offered, and a boy with a long braid standing at her shoulder nodded enthusiastically.

  Their voices rose in excitement, arguing who would get wha
t and when they would be ready, where they’d meet and which route they’d take.

  Elei’s pulse rose like thunder, drowning out the sounds. He was vaguely aware he was getting up, drawing his Rasmus.

  “Oh hells,” he heard Kalaes say, and turned to see him standing. “Trouble.”

  “What are you talking about?” Zoe scrambled to her feet, her chest pulsing a deep crimson. “I have watchdogs posted all around. This is a safe place, nobody knows it.”

  “If they say there’s trouble, we’d better get our asses moving,” Alendra said. “Let’s take the kids out.”

  Someone had betrayed them again, and Elei glanced at Dain’s direction, finger itching to pull the trigger, but they were moving, herding the children, breaking into small groups, and he couldn’t tell them apart — moving targets made of pulsing colors. To Rex, they were all the same.

  “Dera!” Zoe gestured at the tall girl who’d been with the kids. “Take them to Mr. Konny’s. He’s promised to help. Go now!”

  Dera nodded, young face pale with fear, and grabbed one of the smallest in her arms. “Will you come, too?”

  “Soon. Take the back door. Go!”

  Two of the older kids grabbed small ones in their arms and by the hands and herded them down a corridor Elei hadn’t explored.

  “Split up,” Kalaes said, his voice coming in echoes. “All of you go, keep in groups, and pretend not to hurry, get it?”

  The blobs of color moved, dividing into twos and threes.

  “Use the garbage chute. The screws are loose,” Zoe said, “Mitt, you know what I’m talking about, lead them.”

  “Dain, stay,” Kalaes said, damn him. Just what Rex needed to resume shrieking in Elei’s ears.

  Although... A tiny rational voice in the back of Elei’s mind was pleased. Have Dain close, keep an eye on him, make sure he didn’t betray them.

  Yeah, that was good.

  “Why in the hells do you want Dain with us?” Alendra hissed. “You’re mad.”

  “You say the sweetest things,” Kalaes drawled.

  “What’s this about?” Dain’s voice sounded high-pitched, on the verge of panic. “You’re not going to execute me or anything, are you?”

  “Not if you shut your mouth,” Kalaes said.

  As the other gang leaders left, the feeling of wrongness intensified, raising the hairs on Elei’s nape, tensing his muscles. His fingers clenched on the grip of his Rasmus.

  A familiar buzzing reached his ears. Engines. “We need to leave, now.”

  “Wait,” Kalaes said, placing a hand on Elei’s shoulder. How could he remain so calm?

  “What for?”

  “For them to get out of earshot,” Kalaes muttered, leaning close.

  Elei ground his teeth and forced his shaking legs not to move. “They’re here, Kal. The police.”

  “I know. Zoe, can you get us out?”

  “Hot air ducts,” Zoe said and started toward one of the sleeping rooms. “Hurry.”

  Finally, they were moving. Elei’s heart beat so fast he thought he might be sick. Sweat slicked his palms and he tightened his hold on the Rasmus, afraid it might slip and fall.

  Time lurched and started, breaking into uneven chunks. They ran through corridors, crossed a room and came to a stop inside a bathroom. Zoe climbed on a stool and unscrewed a grid from the wall.

  “You have central heating? You’ve got to be kidding me,” Kalaes muttered.

  “Bah, it’s never worked, soomi.” The screws tinkled to the floor, loud as explosions to Elei’s ears, and he made himself move. He holstered his gun and reached up to take the lid.

  “Go,” he said.

  Zoe pulled herself up and shimmied into the vent. Kalaes gave Alendra a leg up, then Dain, and turned to Elei.

  “Your turn, fe. You’re not staying last again, are we clear?”

  Elei opened his mouth to refuse, remembered the guilt in Kalaes’ eyes the previous night, and closed it. He reached up and pulled himself into the opening. It was cold and smelled of rat droppings and mold. Familiar scents, and with Rex to the fore he saw the vent stretching ahead, the heartbeats of the others flaring like torches.

  He heard Kalaes replace the lid and shuffle behind him, cursing softly as his wide shoulders scraped the vent, sending shivers through the metal.

  “You okay?” Elei whispered.

  “I’d answer you,” Kalaes said, “but I need to hold my breath to fit in here.” He inhaled. “Oh, crap.”

  ***

  The vent ended in an alley no wider than a corridor. Elei wiggled out and took stock. It looked like a dead-end.

  Zoe, who had been waiting for them outside, turned around and started walking. Hoping she knew what she was doing, Elei waited for Kalaes to emerge puffing and cursing, and followed.

  Rex reluctantly subsided a notch as they entered another rundown building, with deep cracks in its walls and the stench of urine slithering in its corners. A whistle sounded from outside, and a girl materialized in the gloom of the entrance hall, dark hair hanging in her eyes, black pants riding low on her hips.

  “Zoe?” She gaped at them.

  “We need to cross to the docks and that means going through Seagull territory. Can you arrange passage?”

  The girl chewed on her lip and nodded. “They’re after you, aren’t they?”

  “Yeah. Look, I know you chose to remain neutral. It’s just this once. I’ll owe you.”

  “As if I have a choice.” The girl sighed theatrically. “Who denies the queen of the east side?”

  “Well, then.” Zoe grinned. “Good, because there’s one more thing. I need your rats to send a message to certain gang leaders. Tell them the plan remains as was and we meet tonight, at the agreed time, at the western water tower.” She rattled off the names of the leaders who’d agreed to help.

  All was going according to plan. They’d only have to make sure they were at the meeting point early to explain it to the gang leaders.

  Kalaes cleared his throat and Elei wondered if he’d tell her the truth.

  “What is it?” Zoe gave him a wary look.

  “Don’t tell Mitt,” Kalaes said. His blue eye seemed to glow in the twilight.

  “Why not?” Alendra shifted uneasily from foot to foot. “Wasn’t Dain the one we suspected?”

  “Yeah, wasn’t I the bad guy?” Dain drawled.

  “Trust me,” Kalaes said.

  “Kal?” Elei studied the older boy’s face but it was set in grim and tired lines.

  “Mitt was flashing,” Kalaes said. “His girls, too.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Dain muttered.

  “Yeah, better not tell Mitt,” Elei agreed. He had no clue what the flashing meant, but Iliathan had been flashing too, apparently, and it didn’t appear to be a good thing.

  “You’re both nuts,” Dain huffed, and Zoe made a small harrumphing noise in the back of her throat.

  “So...” The dark-haired girl glanced from one to the other, then turned to Zoe. “I won’t tell Mitt. I’ll let the others know. I’ll notify the rats about your passage.”

  And that was that. The girl turned and vanished into the darkness.

  “Queen of the east side?” Kalaes winked at Zoe. “I think your palace has been overrun, Highness.”

  Zoe shook her many braids and winked right back, leading the way deeper into the building. “Where the Queen goes, the palace follows, poosker. If you wish to serve me, I’ll graciously create a position for you. Like undressing me at bedtime, what say you?”

  That won a laugh from Kalaes, the first real laugh Elei had heard from him in a while. “I’m speechless.”

  “That’d be a first,” Alendra grumbled as they exited into a passage lit with bare bulbs in the walls.

  They fell quiet as they trudged through a maze of winding passages that made Elei wonder what the place had been. A storehouse? A room rental?

  A whiff of fried fish hit him, along with the tang of salt from the sea. Th
ey hurried through a doorway into a dead end crowded with piles of trash and a small food stand. The old woman tending the pan under a sputtering lamp post gave them a blank stare and said nothing as they pulled on their hoods and stalked out toward the brighter lights of the avenue.

  “Why the docks?” Elei asked as they crossed between stalling aircars, through the din of honks and hoots and calls from stall-tenders with offers of sageron tea, fried fungi and K-blooms.

  His stomach grumbled. Sugar.

  Shut up, Rex. No way was he feeding the parasite. Without the medicine, laying off sugar was the only way to control it.

  But Kalaes stopped, turned as if in a trance and headed toward one of the K-bloom stalls. What was he doing?

  Elei blinked.

  Then he knew. Oh shit.

  “Kal, no!” He ran and, grabbed Kalaes around the waist before he snatched the K-blooms from the top of the stall. He dragged him away. “No sweet. Can’t feed Rex. Come on.”

  “Let me go, fe.” Sweat ran down Kalaes face as he tried to tear himself free. “I just want some K-blooms.”

  “No,” he said. “You can’t. No way.”

  Alendra caught Kalaes’ arm and helped Elei pull him away.

  Zoe hurried after them, Dain in tow. “What’s going on?” she hissed. “What in the five hells are you doing, Kalaes?”

  Elei hauled Kalaes across the avenue, dodging aircars and vendors pushing carts. “Which way, Zoe?”

  “It’s that parasite, isn’t it?” Dain’s voice was strangely devoid of emotion. “Rex. The dots around his neck, the blue eye... It all matches. You infected him.”

  “Here, follow me,” Zoe panted, rushing ahead of them. “What in the hells was that?”

  “What Dain said,” Elei pushed the words through gritted teeth, trying to ignore the craving, to ignore everything but getting Kalaes off the avenue. “It’s Rex. And it’s rising.”

  ***

  “So Rex wants you to eat sugar?” Zoe led them through quiet streets while the fishy stench of the port grew stronger. “Why not have some, then?”

  “You don’t want to see Rex at full strength,” Alendra said, shivering a little, and Elei forced his gaze ahead.