by TW Iain
“Reckon it was an inside job,” she said. “None of the sensor triggered.”
“Any idea who?” Rodin said.
Vanya shrugged, winced. “Could have been Jornas.”
“Seriously?”
“He’d lost Cobey, and we’d forced him to go up against Authority. Wouldn’t surprise me if he tried to make a deal, give us up in exchange for his life.”
“Didn’t work out for him.”
“You expect anything else from Authority?”
Rodin couldn’t say he did.
“Like I say, we didn’t stand a chance,” Vanya said. “A few of us were over here, only figured something was up when the screaming started. The fires had already taken hold when we tried to help.” She shrugged. “Didn’t do any good, though.”
Vanya stared at the house, the flames dancing in her eyes. Her face was still streaked with blood, coated with sweat and dust.
“I was by the back door,” she said. “As soon as they approached, I attacked. Kept space for those behind to shoot, though. Reckon your friend would’ve got a few, Paskia, if they hadn’t been so quick.”
“Friend?”
“Uran. Came out blazing. Sent the warriors scurrying away, at least for a moment. But they were quick—the moment he was out of ammo, they pounced.”
“So Uran didn’t make it?”
Vanya shook her head. “Sorry. They grabbed him, took him outside. Didn’t see, but heard his screams stop. Guess that was when his pain stopped too.”
Paskia closed her eyes, and Rodin wanted to reach out for her. But he was too far away. All he could do was sit and listen as Vanya continued.
“Everyone fought well. Scored a few hits, caused some pain. They grabbed me, though—two of them, stronger than I expected. Dragged me upstairs as the others destroyed everything—killed everyone, then trashed the building. No idea why, but they looked like they were enjoying themselves.”
Rodin sighed, understanding. Warriors were all different. Some, like Vanya, cared for others. They accepted who they were because they had to. They’d trained to fight not because they enjoyed it, but because it would keep them safe, would keep them alive. But then there were others, like Ferra, those who enjoyed inflicting pain, bullies and thugs who wouldn’t question orders as long as they got to see blood.
“When they’d finished, those two meatheads let me go. I couldn’t do anything, not when there were another couple in the room too. I tried, though. Wasn’t going to go down without a fight, right? Must’ve got a lucky strike in, because one of those animals is under this rubble somewhere. Still got my blade up under his ribcage, I reckon.”
“Gutsy move.”
“What?”
“Fighting when outnumbered.”
“You do what you can, right?” She paused. “They beat me, then used some kind of stun-stick.” She lifted her top, and it pulled away with a sickly sound to reveal a dark patch under her ribs, to the right, blistered and angry. “Must’ve been some power, because it sent me flying, left me twitching about on the floor. They laughed, said I should tell my boss what had happened, if I ever woke up. Then they fired a couple of rocket launchers at the ceiling and walls, collapsed the place.” She shrugged, looked to Rodin. “That’s me. So what about you?”
He didn’t glance at Paskia. “Not much to say. Had a few problems, came as soon as we could. Guess we were too late to help, though.”
“Too late to die, you mean.” Vanya looked down, at the hand Rodin held across his stomach. “You get hit?”
He nodded. “I’ll survive.”
“Warrior?”
Rodin nodded again. Vanya raised her eyebrows.
“Dead?”
“Paskia shot her. Clean, through the head. Saved my life.”
“Yeah? Nice.”
Rodin’s mouth tugged, wanting to form a smile. He didn’t turn, but still saw Paskia shrug, saw colour rise in her face.
“Guess my target practice paid off,” she said. “So, what happens now?”
That was the question, wasn’t it? The Paternas Brothers were no more. Authority had control of the district.
They’d failed. Authority had won this fight.
“We need to regroup,” he said.
Vanya shook her head. “We had more intel, just before the warriors attacked. Runner from a position on the border with Dephloren’s district. Said there were more warriors down there, probably defensive positions.”
“No chance of sneaking through?”
“Possibly. Might need to go round, though. Out to the wilds.”
“Rannall’s route.”
Vanya nodded. “Yeah. Looks like he got out at the right time.”
Rodin shifted, groaned as his stomach burst into flame again.
“Any warriors to the northern edge?” Paskia asked.
“Haven’t heard anything,” Vanya said. “You got a plan?”
“Wouldn’t call it that.”
But it was a better suggestion than anyone else had. And, surprising even himself, Rodin agreed to it. It meant splitting up—Vanya reporting back to Genna while he and Paskia returned to the northern Factory—but it made sense.
Returning to the Factory had been Paskia’s suggestion. She’d support Rodin, she said, and was prepared to run for help if his stomach got worse. She had basic meditech training, and she felt confident she could care for him over the long walk.
And it would be long—through the northern district, out toward the wilds, cross the tunnel when the concrete tube slid under the ground, then round to the Factory. Plenty of time for any internal injuries to grow worse. Plenty of time for Authority to move their warriors around, to push hard against Genna.
Plenty of time to be with Paskia, too.
He looked over to her. Her face and hair were smeared with grime and ash, and there was a bruise on her neck he hadn’t noticed before. Her clothes were ripped, cuffs frayed, boots patched with tape. This close, he could smell the sweat on her, the mud on those boots, the hint of blood. Or maybe that was him—he’d only removed the worst of the warrior’s gore.
She turned, catching his eyes, and her head dipped. A nod, nothing more, but again Rodin felt the urge to smile.
He didn’t, though. Just returned the nod.
That was enough, for now.
The story of Dominions continues in Fallen Domain (Dominions VIII). Click here to discover more.
There are many more Dominions stories, but one is a little special. It’s called Control, and tells the story behind some of Rodin’s scars. You can get this novella for free when you sign up to my mailing list (either click on the link or visit www.twiain.com/join-the-list).
Alongside this novella (about 100 pages), you’ll also have access to another exclusive novella, Shadowfall, the prequel to my sci-fi horror series Shadows.
You’ll receive an e-mail from me about once a month, with news of what I’m working on and anything else I think you might be interested in. And, of course, you’re free to unsubscribe at any time.
Thank you for taking the time to read Fading Control. I’d love to know what you thought of this story. The most direct way to do this is to e-mail me at [email protected]. Alternatively, you could let not only me but the whole world know, by leaving a review.
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Anything you can do to help others find my books is appreciated. Thank you.
TW Iain
(And don't forget about the free, exclusive novella, Control, available when you sign up to my mailing list at twiain.com.)
Books by TW Iain
Dominions
Dark, Dystopian thrillers
Dark Glass (Dominions I)
Dead Flesh (Dominions II)<
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Deep Water (Dominions III)
Riled Dogs (Dominions IV)
Rogue Wolf (Dominions V)
Rebel Rout (Dominions VI)
Fading Control (Dominions VII)
Fallen Domain (Dominions VIII)
Final Target (Dominions IX)
Gatekeeper (A Dominions Prologue)—short story
Control (A Dominions Story)—Mailing list exclusive novella
Expedient (A Dominions Story)—novella
Animus (A Dominions Story)—short story
Errant (A Dominions Story)—novella
Impact (A Dominions Story)—short story
Dominions Box Set (Books I-III)
(Contains Dark Glass, Dead Flesh, Deep Water and Gatekeeper)
Shadows
Sci-fi with a dose of horror
Shadowfall (Book One)
Shadowsiege (Book Two)
Shadowstrike (Book Three)
Shadowlair (A Shadows Prequel)—Mailing list exclusive novella
Shadows—The Complete Trilogy
(Contains Shadowfall, Shadowsiege and Shadowstrike)
Ghost Stream
Sci-fi short story available in the anthology The Power Of Words
The Reason We Run
Post-apocalyptic horror short story available in the anthology It's Behind You!
Touch
Horror/tech short story available in the anthology Electromagnetism
