New World Rising

by Jennifer Wilson

  I PRESSED MY fingers to my temples. My head was pounding as the voices blurred around me. We had spent another day trapped in the meeting room listening to the council members squabble with one another. Since the botched acquisition mission, faith in Arstid’s leadership seemed to falter. Odder still, people were starting to listen to me. A plan had been set in motion before I joined their little assembly, but without a way into The Sanctuary it had come to a screeching halt. To most of the council involved, it felt like a setback, but to me it seemed like an opportunity.

  The Subversive had spent the last six years recruiting fallen Tribesman and training them. They now knew the inside workings of every Tribe, every Tribe but one. The one I wanted to see fall more than any other. The one I seemed to know the most about. Who knew all of my vengeful thieving would actually yield something other than vindictive gratification.

  There was no question now that the Ravagers had a link to The Sanctuary. The question now was were they merely stealing or was The Sanctuary supporting them? Those hot-headed members like Archer and Maddox needed no further proof than the weapons we discovered and wanted to launch a blind attack on the Ravagers. They felt the best way to wage a war was to pull the trigger first. Others, like Veyron and Willets, reverted back to their Adroit roots and sought more information before wanting to get their hands dirty. They felt a war was best started with knowledge and a strategy. The resulting disagreement was what made my head hurt.

  Everyone’s head swiveled to me. Someone had just asked me a question, but I wasn’t listening.

  “What do you think?” Arden raised his eyebrows, awaiting my answer. Instead of admitting my inattention, I spoke the thoughts running through my own mind.

  “Bickering about this isn’t getting us anywhere. We don’t have enough information to act but we can’t just sit around waiting for something to happen. The Ravagers may be Id-driven monsters, but they are not fools. They must know we are moving against them now. It’s not just them either. Something in the city is changing. All of the Tribes have become restless. That attack the other night in the alley was no coincidence. You are not as invisible as you used to be. The Tribes know you’re here and they won’t let you slip by unscathed. You are a band of deserters and miscreants to them. If you think you have seen their wrath, you haven’t seen anything yet. If they catch up to you, pray you are killed and not captured.

  “With that said, I think we need to split off into small groups, bring less attention to ourselves. There’s safety in numbers, but not when you are trying to keep a low profile. Teams of two or three need to start scouting the city, watching the Tribes’ movements. I have a few allies outside of the Tribes that I can call on. The time has come to take action. I have safe houses located throughout the city that are conveniently located near the Tribes’ dens. I suggest we use them.”

  “You mean stay out there?” Willets looked at me with blatant disbelief.

  “Yes. Hiding in here will yield you nothing. If you want a revolution then you need to start acting like soldiers. Thieving weapons will only get you so far. It’s time you started using them or the Tribes will continue to pick us off one by one. You need to start not only fighting back, but also picking the fights. The key is turning them against each other. Tensions between the Tribes are already at a breaking point, we just need to give them the final push.”

  Archer perked up. “You mean setting up other Tribes for our attacks?”

  “No one knows better than you how the Wraiths fight, who better to falsify one of their attacks than a former Tribesman?”

  “I won’t murder people. I am not like them.” Archer bristled.

  “I’m not asking you to murder anyone. I am saying destroy some food supplies, burn a few vacant meeting locations, and leave marks on claimed territories. It doesn’t take a death to frame another Tribe.”

  “And while the Tribes war with one another, the Ravagers will be easier to infiltrate.” Triven followed my train of thought.

  “Exactly.” I nodded at him.

  A murmur of appreciation filtered through the room. Only Arstid remained frozen as she avoided my eyes. I could hear the plans begin to emerge as they spoke. Old Tribesmen leaned into one another, comparing their thoughts. The few survivors from The Sanctuary looked slightly lost as their counterparts interacted.

  “All those in favor?” Triven’s voice carried over the din.

  “Aye!” Over half of the room shouted in unison.

  We had a plan.