by J. J. Green
Carina picked up a gnawed rib and nibbled at the remnants of meat that clung to it, speculating what the kid might do. Harmon still hovered in the background, so Reyes would probably have to follow his mother’s order. It looked like Langley ran the show and if Reyes didn’t do as he was told the matriarch would soon hear about it.
Reyes looked about as uncomfortable as Carina had ever seen anyone look. After a few moments, he said, “She isn’t as bad as she comes across, you know.”
Carina put down her rib bone and gave a short laugh. “You mean your mom? That’s some compliment. Not as bad as she comes across. I hope someone says that about me one day,” Carina said sarcastically. She pushed back her chair and stood up, wiping her greasy hands on her pants. She glanced at the kid, who seemed to be chewing over her words. She’d been planning on ignoring the spoiled brat, but she reasoned that it wouldn’t hurt to have a young, impressionable ally. “So, what’s this Mech Battle we’re going to? Mechs battling, I guess?”
Reyes’ eyes lit up, either due to the mention of the event or Carina’s willingness to speak to him. “It isn’t exactly mechs. That would be boring. It’s new inventions especially for fighting.”
“You mean like weaponized armor?” Carina had heard of armor that was more like an exoskeleton and had weapons attached. Equipment like that had a place in some battles, but it wasn’t generally used in the military. It was too bulky and it had marginally slower reaction times. A soldier in a mech suit was slower than a soldier in regular armor.
“Sometimes it’s kind of like that,” Reyes replied, “but you never know what it’ll be until the competitors come into the pit. That’s the fun of it. They can wear almost whatever they like. There are only a few rules. They can’t use anything that might be dangerous to the audience, like explosives or projectiles. But that’s about it.”
Carina’s interest was no longer feigned. She’d been in plenty of engagements. The idea of watching newly invented mechs fighting sounded interesting. “So who controls them?”
“I don’t know to be honest. Men and women. That isn’t important, is it? There are a few major sponsors of the battles. I guess they pay the fighters to compete.”
“How dangerous is it?” Carina asked, imagining that the fighters were probably ex-soldiers or mercs.
“Oh, pretty dangerous. People have died. It’s rare that a fighter doesn’t have to retire from the match due to injury.”
Carina doubted that the competitors were only paid a set fee. She’d encountered similar arrangements on other worlds. Usually, the fighters received a percentage of the house’s take, and there was always gambling at such events. The fighters would be betting on themselves too. “How do they tell who’s won?”
“That’s easy. It’s the first mech that’s incapacitated. As soon as a competitor can’t fight back, the match is over.”
“Should be interesting,” Carina said, giving Reyes a conspiratorial wink. He grinned. It looked like she might have made a friend.
***
For her second journey by hover transport, Carina was allowed to sit up front. Her short conversation with Reyes had persuaded her to ditch her oppositional stance. Her defiance would only work against her. If Langley Dirksen believed that Carina was on the verge of joining the Dirksens, she might become less vigilant.
A woman Carina hadn’t seen before sat at the front of the vehicle, controlling it. Behind her sat Langley and her son. Harmon sat next to Carina in the back seat.
“I never heard of Dirksens living on this planet,” Carina remarked. “I thought it was neutral territory.”
“We were forced to move here after the Sherrerrs began to expand their range,” Langley replied. “As far as I know, they aren’t aware that we’ve taken control of Ostillon, and that’s how we’d like to keep it.”
Carina wondered what Langley meant by “taken control of Ostillon.” If the Dirksens’ methods were like the Sherrerrs,’ they’d probably enacted a military coup of the planet’s government or governments, imposed harsh taxes on businesses and individuals, and the recruited local thugs into a militia, turning them against their own people and encouraging them to support themselves with protection money. She shuddered. There was no way she wanted to help the Dirksens, even to get back at the Sherrerrs who had allowed her mother’s evil treatment. However, she didn’t mention her feelings to Langley. “What’s your role in the Dirksen clan, if you don’t mind me asking?”
“My, what a polite question,” Langley replied. “I thought you could be nice if you tried. Well, I guess you might call me one of the inner circle. I’m responsible for many of our larger businesses, which is why I was very interested to hear about you.” She turned in her seat to look Carina in the eyes. “Believe me, you could have received much worse treatment from some of my peers. Some would want revenge for the offenses we’ve suffered at the hands of the Sherrerrs in recent times. They would love the opportunity for someone to bear they brunt of their anger. Luckily for you, and I think for the rest of my clan too, you fell into my hands. Others might not understand how valuable you are to us unharmed and compliant. You would be wise to remember that if you aren’t agreeable I won’t be able to protect you from the rest of my clan forever.”
Carina broke eye contact with the matriarch to look out the transport’s window. Already she was under the threat of violence, torture, and whatever else the Dirksens had in store. So much for Langley’s fine words.
The lights of the towers of the metropolis rose in the distance, a multicolored kaleidoscope. Hover transports moved across the city, shifting the pattern. “Has Ostillon always been this high tech? Or has it developed since the Dirksens’ arrival?”
Langley had turned to face forward once more. “Ostillon has changed almost beyond recognition over the last few cycles. My clan generally hate to live in backward places without modern conveniences. Of course, some aspects of the older culture cling on. You’ll see one example of it tonight. On our other stronghold worlds, the Mech Battle would never be allowed. It’s far too uncivilized. But it’s such a popular sport in Ostillon, it would have been counter-productive to outlaw it. Besides, it allows the population to vent some of the natural aggression they feel in response to our takeover.”
By the time they arrived at the Mech Battle stadium, Carina’s curiosity had risen further. If the contest was as riotous as Langley implied, she might have an opportunity to slip away. A crowd was a good place to hide. She was glad she hadn’t changed into the fine clothes offered to her, which would have made her easier to spot.
They went through a private entrance in the back of the stadium directly to a small, empty box that overlooked a wide, dusty, very deep pit. The stadium was split into halves, with two tall walls separating the sides. Some of the audience was in the pit, though they were being rapidly evacuated, and the side shows that had been set up at the edges were being dismantled. Though no fighting was yet taking place, the noise of the crowd was deafening. Carina guessed that twenty to thirty thousand people were present.
Harmon shut the door to the box and stood in front of it, his bulk almost covering its entire frame. The woman who had controlled the transport also remained in the box, sitting next to Carina. Langley had taken out an interface that she was consulting, and Reyes sat at the front of the box, peering into the pit.
A compere spoke from somewhere Carina couldn’t see, announcing that the first battle would commence in five minutes. Reyes asked his mother, shouting over the hubbub, “Who are you betting on tonight?”
“Spearcorps,” she replied. “They did very well last time.”
“Go Spearcorps,” exclaimed Reyes, returning his gaze to the pit.
The ground shook, and what Carina had taken to be walls on each side of the stadium split down the center. The walls were massive gates, and through both strode the most amazing mech fighting machines Carina had ever seen.
Chapter Six
Parthenia was so tired she could bare
ly stay upright. Darius had fallen asleep long ago as she carried him. He was resting against her back and she struggled to hold onto his relaxed body. He seemed ready to slip off at any moment.
It was so dark she could only just make out the shapes of the vegetation, yet she’d continued walking long after sunset, too frightened to stop and lie down to sleep. The narrow track they’d been following had disappeared in the darkness and she was going wherever she could pass between the trees. As dusk had fallen the noises of the forest had grown louder. Things were moving around her. Were they following her? Nothing had drawn close—yet. Were the night creatures only waiting for her to stop before they pounced? Her legs felt like they were on the verge of collapsing. She’d passed what she’d thought was the end of her strength hours ago. It was pure fear that kept her putting one foot in front of the other.
Thorns had torn her dress to rags. Whenever her clothing caught on one, she no longer stopped to remove it. She pulled herself free roughly, heedless of tears. She’d walked tens of kilometers, she guessed, farther than she’d ever walked. The forest had to be huge, unless she’d only walked in circles. She shook her head. She had to stop thinking about that and concentrate on reaching the end of the woods.
Why hadn’t Carina Sent to her? She couldn’t understand it. Had her sister decided to abandon her family? Parthenia knew that she and her siblings were a lot of bother. They weren’t tough like Carina. They’d been coddled all their lives and didn’t know how to do hardly anything for themselves. Perhaps Carina had decided she would be better off without them. It was true. She would be better off without them.
Parthenia had promised herself that she wouldn’t cry. Her arms were so tired from holding Darius’ legs they trembled. Her back ached from bending over to prevent him from falling. Her leg muscles throbbed. She was also painfully hungry and thirsty. She’d wanted to be brave, but as she accepted that Carina might never come for them, tears spilled down her cheeks.
It seemed so unfair. She couldn’t believe that after all their efforts to escape—from their dash through the corridors of the flagship Nightfall under fire, through the long chilly days aboard the shuttle, to being suddenly Transported to the middle of nowhere on a remote planet—everything would end for her and Darius on their first night by themselves. She wished they’d been able to stay with the others. She wouldn’t have minded so much if she’d been with her family. But wishing wasn’t going to change anything.
Parthenia had reached her limit. She was now walking so slowly she was barely moving. Whether she stopped or not, the night creatures could catch them if they wanted. She might as well stop, she guessed.
“Don’t worry, Parthenia,” said Darius sleepily. “Carina will come soon.”
“I didn’t know you were awake,” Parthenia replied, comforted by the sound of her brother’s voice close to her ear.
“Yes, I woke up. I want to get down now.”
Parthenia bent her knees and Darius slipped off of her back. The relief was wonderful. She stretched her arms.
“It’s dark,” said Darius. He moved closer and wrapped his arms around her.
“It’s still night time,” Parthenia replied. “Can you walk now? We should keep moving.”
“Do we have some water yet?”
“No. But we’ve walked a long way. We must be nearly out of the forest now. If we carry on walking, we might find a house soon, and we can ask the people who live there for a drink,” Parthenia replied, thinking it was odd how trying to be positive for Darius’ sake made her feel better. She thought she could manage to go a little farther now that she was relieved of her brother’s weight.
“Hmm… ” The little boy looked around. “Okay.” He took her hand and they set off again.
Darius’ hand was cold. Parthenia was cold too, despite her physical exertion. That was another reason to keep going. If they stopped moving they might become dangerously chilled.
“What’s that?” Darius asked. He was pointing off to his left.
Parthenia looked in the same direction but all she could see was the black shadows of trees. “I don’t know what you’re looking at. What can you see?”
“There’s a light over there. Is it the house where we can get water?”
“A light! Where?”
“Right there,” the little boy replied pedantically as if his sister were stupid.
“I can’t… ” Parthenia squatted down to her brother’s level and followed the direction of his gaze. He was right. Through a gap in the vegetation a small blue light shined steadily in the distance. She hadn’t been able to see it, but Darius was short enough to see the space in the vegetation. She gripped her brother’s arms tightly. “It is a light. Good job, Darius. Good job. Let’s go there, shall we?”
“Yes, let’s get some water.”
Traveling in the direction of the light proved hard, however. The trees were clumped together more tightly that way than any other, and they lost sight of the light several times as they went along. Trying to head toward the light involved pushing past thick ferns and bushes, resulting in many scratches for both of them. At one point, they lost sight of the tiny blue glow entirely and Parthenia almost gave up hope of ever finding it again. They were forced to double back a long way and try a different route. Eventually, though, the tree trunks and undergrowth thinned out and the light grew nearer. As the wider landscape became more visible, Parthenia realized the beam was shining from the top of a tower and that the base of the tower was somewhere below the level of the forest.
In his eagerness to reach the light and the water he desperately wanted, Darius let go of her hand and ran ahead.
“Darius,” Parthenia called. “Stop! Wait for me.” Her brother didn’t answer. “Darius! Darius! Stop!”
“Wh—” Her brother gave a gasp and cried out.
“Darius!” Parthenia rushed forward. Somewhere in front of her, vegetation was being smashed by a falling body. It was as she’d feared. They’d reached a ridge and her brother had run right over the edge.
“Darius,” she called down. All she could see was the dark shadows of trees.
“Parthenia! Help!”
“Where are you?” She stepped gingerly down the steep slope, holding a branch to prevent herself from sliding on the loose, dry leaves.
“I’m here!”
“Hold on. Don’t move. I’m coming to get you.” Parthenia eased down the incline, heading toward her brother’s voice. “Keep talking so I can find you.”
“I’m here, here, here!”
Despite the dire circumstances, Parthenia almost smiled. “That’s good. Don’t stop.”
“Here I am. Here I am. Here I am.” Darius echoed his own words several more times, his tone becoming more sing-song as he went on.
Parthenia finally saw her brother clinging to some tree roots. The spot he was at was particularly steep. She wasn’t sure how to reach him, and if he let go of the roots to try to climb up to her he would probably slide away.
“You found me,” he exclaimed.
“Yes, but don’t move, okay? Don’t let go.”
“Okay.”
“Are you all right? Have you hurt anything?”
“I bumped my leg. It hurts a bit.”
“Okay. Just hold on. I’m going to try to get down to you. But don’t let go until I say so.”
Parthenia had an idea. If she went on all fours and crawled backward down the slope, she thought she could reach her brother and he could climb onto her. Then she could carry on moving slowly downward until they hopefully encountered an area that was less steep.
Her plan worked at first. She reached Darius, though the rough ground hurt her knees and hands. But as soon as her brother let go of the root he was holding and tried to climb onto her, he fell again. Parthenia shouted and tried to grab him, and then suddenly she was falling too. She slithered down the coarse surface, hitting bushes and vines, bouncing from tree trunks until finally, mercifully, all her motion ceased.
Dazed, it took Parthenia a moment to take in her surroundings. She was at the bottom of a muddy ditch and the slope she’d come down was dark and shadowy above her. For the first time that night, she could also see the wide, starry sky.
“Parthenia,” Darius called. “Where are you?”
“Here,” she replied. “Where are you?” To her amazement, Darius came walking along the bottom of the ditch toward her. He didn’t seem to have been seriously harmed by his rapid descent.
“We fell,” he said. “Are you hurt?”
Parthenia moved her arms and legs. She hadn’t broken anything as far as she could tell, but when she tried to stand, she gave a small scream and fell over. She’d done something to her right ankle. “I think I did hurt myself, Darius. Can you help me?”
Her brother came closer and she put her arm over his shoulders. They were both coated in evil-smelling mud from the ditch. Parthenia hoped there was someone at the tower who would help them. Neither of them were in a position to go any farther that night, and if they didn’t get water or food soon, things would look very bad.
The smooth, black silhouette of the tower was easy to spot against the stars but it wasn’t so easy to reach. They walked—or rather, Parthenia hopped—along the ditch but there didn’t seem to be any way out of it. They were forced to scale its slippery side. Parthenia pushed Darius up to the top of the edge, putting her weight on her good leg, so he could climb over onto the ground above. Then after several tries she managed to climb out too.
She stood on one leg, leaning on her brother’s shoulder. Behind them, the forest overshadowed the sky. Parthenia could just make out black shapes flying above it. She shivered and turned in the other direction. The land was flatter though still quite wild. The tower was the only building that she could see. The tower displayed the only artificial light for kilometers around. She wondered what purpose it served. They were very lucky that Darius had seen it.
“Let’s go ask the people for some water,” Darius urged.
