Other nobles and guards started to react and in moments I'd be overwhelmed. I was outnumbered heavily, even just by the guards surrounding me. This was a desperate plan, if it could even be called a plan.
I didn't care. Amy had made her choice when she struck the prince, and I would defend her to my dying breath. Gladly, proudly, eagerly. If that meant my death, so be it. Better a death with her than a life without.
A guard grabbed at me, and I swept his legs out from under him. Another pulled a shockwhip from his belt — I punched him in the throat and took it from him, lashing out at a noble who'd managed to draw a sword.
The whip coiled around his arm and I hit the power stud. Energy crackled, sending the noble screaming back, his sword clattering to the floor. Around me people screamed and other guests, lacking the swordsman's courage, started to flee in all directions. The chaos suited me fine, anything to keep the guards distracted and focused on me.
One charged into my side, shoulder first, and the impact carried me to the ground. A quick punch to the neck left him choking and helpless, but the next rose over me, club raised high. I braced myself for the impact, expecting the pain of broken bones.
Before he could strike, though, a red arm snaked around his neck and dragged him back. Athazar lifted the human and squeezed, crushing the life from him as I rolled back to my feet.
"Like old times," he growled, and I grinned at him.
"It's been too long since we were truly on the same side," I said, turning to punch a guard who threatened him. My fist sank into the human's chest, snapping ribs and crushing organs.
"Sorry if I was rough with you," he said, throwing the guard's body into another attacker. "Couldn't think of any other way to get you up here."
"It worked," I said. That was all that mattered in the end. "Anyway, it looks like you're going to die beside me. I can't hold grudges against someone willing to do that."
He laughed at that. "That wasn't part of the plan, but it turns out that killing these bastards is worth it."
One of the guards got under my block, his shock baton smacking into my stomach. The pulse of energy it sent through my body burned and slowed me, agony shooting through my nerves. His second blow nearly connected before I could get out of the way. I was slowing, and even with Athazar fighting at my side I couldn't block the aisle for much longer. Sheer weight of numbers would take us down soon.
Kicking the guard's knee hard enough to shatter it, I risked a look up at the stage just in time to see the Lament's robot avatar collapse on top of Amy, pinning her.
The purple-clad priest clutched at the altar, looking outraged and confused. Xeraxis hobbled towards a door, slowed by Amy's punch. But four guards rushed past him, running towards my mate.
My helpless mate, trapped under the weight of a dead robot. A spike of fear shot through me and I leaped forward to intercept them. No one would harm her if I could stop them.
A guard behind me nearly managed to take advantage of my distraction as I ran, but Athazar grabbed his wrist at the last moment. Then I was clear of the melee, leaving him on his own against the remaining guards. He wouldn't last long, but what good would it do to delay those guards if Amy was already dead?
The men ahead of me saw me coming, turned to face me. The nearest one raised a sword, and I swatted it aside. The cut it left on my arm was nothing compared to my rage, and my fist drove into his face with enough force to send him flying back over the altar.
The next froze for a moment too long and I hit him with a bone-crushing kick to the chest, knocking him into a third guard. The last guard remembered his objective and ignored me, rushing for Amy to finish what the robot had started.
I saw her eyes widen as I lunged. The fear, the anger, the despair as his sword point extended towards her. Time seemed to stretch as I launched myself after him, heedless of the way I left myself open to the guards behind me. They could kill me or not, I didn't care, so long as I could protect Amy.
No time for fancy moves or clever, temple-learned tricks. I barreled into him, reaching around him to grab his sword and pull it aside. The blade bit deep into my palm, but the blade turned and struck the deck beside Amy instead of running her through.
My weight carried us both down on top of her, and I aimed him at the blade protruding from Lament's back. With desperate strength he tried to pull himself aside, but no. I was too strong, and our momentum too great. He shuddered as the blade impaled him.
"Kadran," Amy gasped, eyes wide. The sound of her voice filled me with joy, my heart swelling with love for her. Then her eyes snapped to something behind me. "Kadran, look out!"
I reacted instantly, diving sideways and pulling the pile of bodies with me. Together we tumbled off Amy, freeing her. Even so, I wasn't quite fast enough to avoid the guard behind me.
"Go after the prince," I gasped, feeling cold steel bite my side as the guard lunged. If he'd committed fully, that would have been the end of me — but fear held him back, and the wound was deep but not deadly.
Amy pulled herself up and tugged the energy sword free, looking at me as I struggled to my feet. She looked torn, unwilling to abandon me.
"Go! Finish Xeraxis," I shouted. That was the only chance of victory she had, slim as it was. My life didn't matter compared to that.
The guard turned towards her, and I pounced. Wounds slowed me, blood loss left me weak, but the rage that filled me when he turned his sword in her direction wouldn't be denied. His fear-fueled reflexes were nearly fast enough to block my attack, but not quite.
I felt the cold, distant pain of the sword sliding through my flesh as I parried it with my arm, and then my other hand came down on his forearm. The sword dropped to the deck with a clatter and I hit him, the two of us tumbling to the ground. Rolling over and over, battering at each other, each desperate to land a killing blow.
I felt his ribs give, his nose break. But his fists pummeled me too, and my injured arm was too weak to protect me. This human might not have courage, but he was tenacious with his life on the line. His knee caught me hard in the side, driving the air out of me, and he managed to pull a knife from his belt.
My good hand closed on his wrist, trying to twist the knife out of it. But he had two good hands, and between them he kept his grip. Managed to roll over on top of me, pressing the wicked little blade down towards my throat.
Doesn't matter, I thought as I watched the knife inch closer. I didn't expect to live through this, and at least I've given Amy a chance to get her vengeance. That's what matters.
I met my killers’ eyes, snarling defiance. He pushed desperately, and I could see the panic in his eyes. Even now, he feared me. Good.
Then, suddenly, the light in his eyes went out. His arms spasmed, the knife dropping from limp fingers, and he fell sideways to the floor next to me. Behind him stood Amy, sword trembling in her hand. In my weakened condition, it took me a moment to understand what had happened — she'd clubbed him over the head with the pommel.
She'd saved me.
I stared up at her, framed against the battle scene on the roof high above. I'd never seen anything more beautiful than Amy, dress torn and blade in hand, coming to my rescue as I'd come to hers.
"You stayed," I said, and her cheeks flushed.
"I couldn't let you die," she answered, sounding almost defensive as she offered me her free hand. "Not after you've saved me so many times already."
The touch of her fingers on my wrist was electric, and I drew strength from it as I pulled myself to my feet. "Come on then, let's finish this. Together."
"Together," she said, smiling at me as we turned and ran after Xeraxis.
24
Amy
Prince Xeraxis stood waiting for us at the back of the hall, two guards beside him. Still recovering from my punch, he sucked in air desperately, but in his hand he held a sword snatched from one of his guards. He raised it as we approached.
My fingers felt numb around the hilt of the stolen sword in
my hand and its weight dragged on my arm. I had no idea what I was doing and Xeraxis brandished his blade like an expert, pointing at me with the tip. Behind him the mural of the Silent Empress towered over him. A grand backdrop for this battle.
I tried to focus on him and his guards. Getting distracted now would only get me killed.
"You traitorous bitch," Xeraxis snarled, all his decorum and manners gone. "You laid hands on an Imperial Prince and you'll pay for that."
The fear that shot through me as the trio stepped towards us nearly made me stumble, but Kadran was beside me. His presence comforted me, gave me strength I didn't know I had, and I managed to laugh. It didn't sound terribly convincing, but it was better than crying.
"If you're right about me, then you've done worse. You say I'm an Imperial Princess, and you kept me prisoner. Threatened my home and my friends." I tried to hold my stolen sword like I knew what I was doing with it. "You're just a selfish bastard, and I'm going to cut your face off!"
That might have been a little bit too much, but I was angry and scared and hurt. Watching my words was the last thing on my mind.
The three of them weren't slowed by my threat, advancing steadily as we walked forward to meet them. Even if I'd wanted to retreat, there was nowhere to go. The fight in the aisle would be over sooner rather than later, and then there'd be more guards coming up behind us.
We had to act quickly if we were going to have a chance of winning, even a tiny one.
The guards came first, one with sword drawn the other with some kind of club-like weapon. Kadran chuckled darkly and stepped forward to meet them, moving with a dangerous grace that I recognized from his morning practice. Despite his wounds, despite the fact that he was outnumbered and unarmed, I wasn't worried for him. Those guards would get more than they bargained for.
Xeraxis was another matter. He held his blade with a similar grace, and I remembered that he'd had decades, maybe centuries, to learn how to use a sword.
I'd... watched some movies. Great.
But he didn't know that, he couldn't know how outmatched I was. That was the only advantage I had, and I was determined to milk it for all I could. Settling into a stance I was sure I'd seen in a Robin Hood film, I waited for him to come to me.
His first thrust was tentative, taking my measure. Even so it almost reached me before I managed to bat it aside with a parry. Xeraxis frowned, and I forced a smile, hoping that he'd think I was playing some kind of trick.
Another attack, a cut this time, and again I barely parried it. This time he pressed forwards and it was all I could do to keep myself alive, backing away and parrying frantically. Left, right, center, his sword danced here and there almost faster than I could follow.
His frown cleared, replaced by a vicious smile as he realized I had no idea what I was doing. The blade slipped past my guard, cutting into my left shoulder and then withdrawing. By the time I felt the pain, he was back on guard.
"I'm going to take you apart piece by piece, girl," Xeraxis hissed, darting forward again. "The same way I'll take apart your planet."
This time the blade opened up a shallow cut on my arm and I couldn't help crying out in pain. My counter was slow, far too slow, and he danced back out of my range easily. The energy blade hissed through empty space and he laughed.
"You can take my sword but you've no idea what to do with it," he taunted. "I don't have to kill you here. Just take your limbs off, that leaves enough to marry."
Perhaps he was trying to scare me. Maybe I should have been frightened by that threat. But all it did was pour fuel on the flames of my anger and make me more determined to hurt him.
I stabbed at him, and he stepped aside. A hack at his neck, parried. He was too good. There was no way to get past his blade and hit him, and we both knew it. But then, I didn't need to win. Not while Kadran was here. I just needed to last long enough.
Beside me, Kadran danced. Tired and weakened by his wounds, he still moved with a grace I could never dream of matching. And every movement of his ended in a strike or a block, switching from one of the guards to the other. Their attacks never quite connected with him, and as I glanced towards him he punched one of them in the throat.
The man sat down hard, choking and out of the fight.
My distraction let Xeraxis get another attack in, and I yelped in pain as he cut my leg. Stumbling, I felt blood welling up, and I struggled to keep my own sword between us.
That was too much for Kadran to bear. Dropping the final guard with a kick, he charged Xeraxis, fury lending him speed and strength. The triumphant sneer left the prince's face and he ducked back, blocking frantically. The two of them were too quick for me to follow, but as I watched the blur of their fight I realized two things.
First, Kadran was better than his enemy. If Xeraxis hadn't been armed, the fight would have been over quickly.
Second, that wasn't enough. Xeraxis might not be as skilled as Kadran, but the sword gave him too much of an advantage. Even as I caught my breath, I could see that Kadran wouldn't last long. He was slowing, and even one mistake would be enough for Xeraxis to end this.
To end him.
And I couldn't allow that. I forced myself back into the fray, ignoring the danger that put me in. It didn't matter. Xeraxis sneered again, certain that he could take us both on, and in the condition we were in he was probably right. I'd only have one chance at this.
Gathering all my strength, I cut. Not at Xeraxis, the prince was too skilled to let me hit him. Instead, I aimed at his sword. The energy blade in my hand thrummed as it met his plain steel blade and carved through it an inch above the hilt.
Xeraxis froze for a second, staring. He was used to being the one with the energy sword, and as I'd hoped it hadn't occurred to him that he didn't have that advantage this time. Trained reflexes still brought his hand up as though to cut Kadran's arm off, but the stubby remains of his sword weren't enough to hold back my alien love.
Kadran's hand closed on the prince’s throat and he lifted, squeezing. Xeraxis stabbed with what remained of the sword, but Kadran ignored the fresh injury and squeezed. With a sickening crunch, Prince Xeraxis's neck snapped and his body went limp.
Kadran shuddered and dropped the corpse, staggering back to rest against the mural as I ran to his side. The hilt of the sword protruded from his side and I reached for it.
"Don't," he told me. "It's stopping the bleeding."
"We need to get you to a doctor," I gasped. Kadran was covered in wounds but, unaccountably, he was smiling. Even odder, so was I.
It took a moment for me to realize why. We're alive and Xeraxis isn't. We won.
Whatever happened now, we'd won. Earth was safe.
Silence spread through the vast chamber as the audience realized what had happened. The already chaotic scene beyond the forcefield turned into a rout as everyone tried to flee at once.
At the front, Athazar sat down hard as the last of his enemies fled. He was tougher than I'd imagined, and even suffering from a dozen stab wounds he managed a ragged bloody smile up at us as we approached.
"Didn't expect to survive that," he said, voice raw. "I guess no one's willing to fight for a dead prince."
"And I doubt anyone wants to be near here when Lament recovers," I added, glancing back at the fallen robot with a shiver. Her body was dead, but the AI was part of the ship itself — she'd be backed up somewhere, I was certain. "I can't see her being kind to those who failed to save her prince."
"Speaking of which, it's time to get off this psychopath of a warship," Athazar said, pulling himself to his feet with a wince. "I don't want to find out how the Lament for Battles Unfought mourns a dead Prince-Captain."
That idea made me shudder. "I suppose we're lucky she hasn't just emptied all the air into space yet."
"She can't," Kadran reassured me. "Without a Prince-Captain, she can't make any major decisions — not until his heir arrives and takes command, whoever that is. Still, we don't want to be here for
the chaos that'll be coming, and we definitely don't want to be here when his heir turns up."
"So let's get out of here," I said. "Where to?"
"The Golden Fury should be here to collect us," Kadran said. "As long as they haven't decided to leave by the time we get there. So — to the docks, and hope."
"Great plan," Athazar said with a laugh. "But I suppose we've all done stupider things today and come out of it okay. Fine, let's go."
He turned towards the main doors of the cathedral and we started after him.
"Wait." Kadran stopped in his tracks and I stopped with him, looking around to see what was wrong. With gentle strength he disengaged from my arms and made his way back to the altar. I followed, confused.
"We shouldn't stay here," I said, glancing around nervously. Kadran didn't respond, reaching behind the altar and dragging out the priest. He must have been hiding there since the fight broke out.
Kadran hauled the man to his feet and turned to me, grinning. I frowned, confused, as he beckoned me closer.
"Amy, there is one thing I would do before we leave this place. If you will allow me, that is." He looked deep into my eyes, and I nodded warily. I didn't know what he wanted, but I trusted Kadran completely.
His smile was dazzling in its happiness, and he sank down on one knee with a thump. Reaching out for my hand, he squeezed it gently and spoke in a quiet voice.
"Amy Kelland of Earth, I love you as I could love no other. Will you marry me?"
The world stopped around us, and all I could see was him. All I could feel was the pounding of my heart and his grip on my hand. His words filled my mind and my heart and I could barely breathe, let alone speak.
It felt like forever before I could take control of myself enough to nod, but as soon as I had it was like a dam breaking. My feelings poured out, unstoppable.
Stolen by the Alien Raider: A Novel of the Silent Empire Page 15
