Ascension (The Circle War Book 3)

by Matt King

When she saw what was over her shoulder, she tried to shout a warning to the others. There was no time. Polaris and her guards were nearly upon them.

  The cyborg tackled her at the waist, falling with her as they tumbled over the edge of the plateau. They crashed hard on the ground with Polaris still grasping her hands around Aeris’ body. Polaris immediately picked her up and threw her into the side of a pillar. Aeris’ back hit flush, knocking the wind out of her chest. Still, she fought through it to gain her feet. Above her, August and the Horsemen struggled to survive the Minister’s attacks.

  An Orphii noticed their fight and came lumbering toward Polaris, who stood tall in the patch of earth beneath the overhang.

  “Stay back!” Aeris called out, still holding a hand to her aching chest.

  The Orphii looked between her and Polaris with diamond eyes. Reluctant, it turned away and re-joined the fight.

  Polaris shed her top cloak, leaving her smooth white metal skin bare on her long arms. The strands of her artificial hair hung loosely over her face, disheveled from the fall. The scar Aeris had given her streaked out of place down the left side of her face.

  “What are you waiting for?” Polaris said. “This is what you wanted. Take your revenge if you can.”

  Aeris stared her down while she reached behind her head to take Dondannarin’s weapons from their clasp. The chakrams’ grips fit comfortably in her hands. She kept them at her side, ready for Polaris’ charge.

  A stray cannon blast hit the dirt at Aeris’ side, knocking her to the ground. She immediately heard Polaris’ feet pounding across the ground. It took both chakrams to block the cyborg’s hand blades from puncturing her chest. Their purple glow reflected off her expressionless face as she pressed her blades down. Aeris’ arms shook from tension. As hard as she tried, she couldn’t match the machine’s strength. The tip of one blade slowly pressed into her armor, cutting through to her shoulder. The putrid smell of burning flesh filled her nose.

  She gathered her fire and released it in a blast from her eyes. The shot ricocheted off Polaris’ shield, but it had enough force to push her back. Aeris rolled hard and threw her aside.

  Polaris came off the ground like a tree snapping back in the wind. It wasn’t hard to figure out what her tactic was. She came directly at Aeris, trying to keep the fight close. Aeris swung her chakrams. The cyborg whipped her head down to dodge, then grabbed Aeris’ arms by the wrists. The glow of her shield shone brightest around the front of her body to guard against another attack from Aeris’ eyes. This creature learns too quickly. She squeezed her fingers into the flesh of Aeris’ bare skin.

  Little by little, Aeris lost her grip on the chakrams. The pressure grew too great. When the handles slipped out of her palms, Polaris headbutted her straight down to the dirt.

  There was no pause to her attack, no window for Aeris to do anything but defend. Polaris kicked the fallen weapons aside and slammed two quick bladed strikes at her. The tips barely missed Aeris’ face. She swept the cyborg’s legs and tried to scramble for the chakrams. Before her hand could reach the blades, Polaris grabbed her feet and swung her overhead in an arc, slamming her to the ground again.

  “This is how you honor your friend?” she said.

  Aeris kept a tenuous hold on her emotions. Losing control is what the machine wanted. She sprang to her feet and threw two quick punches, hoping one would make it through Polaris’ outer shell. Both failed to connect, glancing off the barrier.

  The din of the battle stole any slight advantage Aeris had because of her senses. When they’d fought before, she’d only managed to hurt the cyborg because they were alone and she could concentrate on the slight movements her hair could detect. In the middle of a chaotic fight, there was no hope.

  Polaris followed a stinging backhand with a crossing punch that cracked the bones in Aeris’ jaw. She stumbled backward, holding a hand to her cheek. The cyborg sent a spinning kick into her gut, then leveled her with an uppercut that seemed to come from nowhere. The pain was dizzying. Aeris scrambled back to her feet. She blocked the next two punches, but not the third. She went down again, once more holding her fractured jaw. A line of blood dripped from the corner of her mouth.

  She heard the footsteps immediately. This time she tumbled away. When she righted herself, she sent two blasts out of her hands, one aimed at Polaris’ head and one aimed at her feet. Attacking two different areas was the only way she could make it past the machine’s shields before. This time, the machine had once again learned from her mistakes. She saw the blasts coming and concentrated the shield only to those two areas. The fire skipped off harmlessly.

  “Do you feel it?” Polaris asked. “This war has slipped away from you, Aeris. Your godclone is dead.”

  The confirmation that Cerenus was gone hurt, despite the fact that she’d assumed it to be true. “Yours is gone as well,” she replied.

  “An acceptable loss. Only one more of you needs to die for Amara to claim her prize and bring Pyra to life. It will be my honor to claim that life.”

  An Elosian came screaming out of the melee behind Polaris and launched itself toward her. She swung around to meet the charge with a pair of bladed thrusts into the animal’s gut. Having her back turned was all the opening Aeris needed.

  She ran forward and grabbed the machine around the waist before wrenching her away and slamming her face-first into the ground. Her attacks were a blur to her, fueled as much by frustration as strategy. She sent flaming punch after flaming punch into the gut of Polaris. When the cyborg tried to throw her off, she grabbed her arm and held it across her chest as she leveled one shot after another at her face. It didn’t matter to her that the shields kept her from doing any real damage. Her attacks were as good as defense, and she needed the time to heal.

  A blooming cloud of white light sparked in the distance, stealing her concentration for a precious second. It had come from the area where they’d seen the Tria. Ion, no.

  The pain in her side barely registered at first. When she looked down, Polaris’ fist was buried deep in her left side, the base of her energy blade butted up against her armor. Aeris’ blood spilled over it. She reached down to pull it out and Polaris swatted her arm away. The cyborg sparked another bladed fist and sank it into Aeris’ ribs.

  Blood tickled the back of her throat. Polaris’ cold mechanical eyes studied her, waiting for her life to end. Aeris held the machine’s wrists, trying to keep her from lifting the blades higher, but her strength faded as quickly as her life.

  A strange feeling of acceptance formed. She tried to push it down. If I am to die, it will not be this way. I will go out with the weapon of my people in my hands and the names of my fallen in my throat.

  She stoked the fire in her hands again. She let out a burst, knocking one of Polaris’ blades away. The cyborg immediately thrust upward with her other weapon, narrowly missing Aeris’ heart. Aeris screamed through the pain filling her chest and sent a flaming punch into the side of Polaris’ jaw. She followed with a two-handed burst of fire that knocked her to the ground.

  Aposthe. I’lanyo.

  She held a hand to her leaking wounds as she stumbled across the sandy dirt. The chakrams were so close. Polaris charged after her. Aeris turned and sent another flash of fire toward her legs to keep her off balance.

  Severine. Ollayne.

  Her thoughts were ragged and disconnected. She fought to keep her concentration as she reached down to take one of Dondannarin’s weapons in her hands. The grip gave her a moment of comfort, a reminder of the world she represented and the friend she lost. She took her hand away from her wound and stumbled at the shock of pain. With her bloodied hand, she took the second weapon.

  She heard a strike coming toward her. She swung around, swept Polaris’ leg, and then kicked her in the same motion. Her healing wounds ripped open, fresh again.

  Cestia. Eldoran.

  Polaris recovered strong opposite her. Behind her, the battle raged. An Elosian sent a lifeless Minist
er shell slamming against the top of the pillar behind the cyborg.

  Aeris’ eyes struggled to focus. She gripped the chakrams as well as she could and then sent both streaking toward the machine, one aimed at her head and the other at her midsection. Polaris dodged them easily. The two chakrams flew past and buried in the stone pillar.

  Polaris didn’t hesitate. She stormed forward for the kill.

  Aeris steadied her shaking hands.

  For Dondannarin.

  With the last of her strength, she poured everything into a blast of fire from her hands. Polaris flew backwards, her shield blocking the flames.

  The shield faded as soon as she struck the stone.

  One of Dondannarin’s blades protruded from her stomach. The other separated Polaris’ head from her shoulders. With a flicker, the light behind the cyborg’s eyes faded to nothing.

  Aeris fell to the ground on her side. Her breaths were quick and forced through blood still gathered in her throat. She grabbed her side again, holding the wound closed while her body tried to heal.

  Out of the corner of her eye, a Minister scanned the fallen Polaris. He looked to her next, his cold stare locked in hers. He rushed forward with his staff raised.

  August’s blades came slicing through the air above her, singing their song. He sent both swords into Minister’s chest. He pulled them sideways, leaving the cyborg’s body to fall to fall lifelessly to the side.

  He formed the swords into a staff again before offering her his hand. “Stay with you, remember?”

  She gave him a tired smile. “You followed orders for once.” She grimaced as he lifted her back to standing. The Horsemen grabbed her arms, helping her steady herself. For the first time, she noticed Galan’s face alongside Anemolie’s in the sky. His lifeless eyes watched above a pronounced frown.

  I hope you felt every moment of her death. She got what she deserved.

  “Where do we stand?” she asked.

  As soon as she said the words, a loud crack of lightning erupted from the battle to the left. She and August paused along with the rest of the fighting. Her mending heart raced.

  Red light flashed across August’s mask. “What’s happening?” he muttered.

  Aeris stumbled backward. She gave the only order that she could. “Run!”

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  The paths through the stars were quiet, a placid image in contrast to Amara’s thoughts. She tried to quiet them as she drew closer to Michael. They were an unending cycle of indecision, waiting on a resolution to stop them—something she didn’t seem of a mind to make. Part of her wanted to see Michael suffer for taking her gift and using it for his own gain. She made him something out of nothing and he had abandoned her.

  This should not go unpunished.

  Paralos also shared his full measure of blame. Perhaps more. Michael’s mind was vulnerable from the start. The old man saw that and took advantage of it at a time when she thought he was beaten. She had underestimated his desire for power. His actions with Michael flew in the face of her rule.

  This, also, should not go unpunished.

  Last in her cycle of thoughts was to take her vengeance on both of them. Of all her possible decisions, this was the one that felt the most satisfying. It was true that she only needed one of them to bring Pyra to life, but both deserved to forfeit their lives and perish in this world before Pyra delivered the true believers to Ascension.

  She told herself her indecision was due to those three factors bearing equal weight, but the truth dwelled beneath them, clear as a cloudless sky and yet she didn’t want to see it.

  Instead, she peered through the depths and saw her destination come into focus. Floating next to a blue giant star was her Michael. Beside him was Paralos.

  She arrived at the edge of the system where Michael hid and made no effort to rein in her strength. Instantly, the planets were ablaze with her light. She disintegrated a gas giant as she moved toward the blue star. Seeing Michael in his godly state affected her more than she imagined. He was an amorphous collection of churning energy, and he was scared—she could see it plainly. It took all of his mental strength to hold himself together. Paralos had not prepared him for life as a god. She had a notion as to why.

  Paralos moved to Michael’s side as she approached. Unlike Michael, he was as steady as stone. His light was a uniform white.

  She transformed into her human form, still filled with light. She wanted Michael to see her face. Paralos matched her. Michael stayed silent in his pure form, seemingly angry and lost at the same time.

  “You are not welcome here,” Paralos said. “This is one of my systems.”

  “I go where I please.”

  “Those days are over, Amara. Your rule is coming to an end.”

  She let Paralos’ taunts skip past her. Instead, she concentrated her stare on Michael. He shrank unwillingly before her. His pride was the only glue keeping him together.

  “So it has come to pass,” Paralos continued. “I warned him this day would come, that you would eventually try to kill him for realizing his potential. He knows, now, what type of person you are. Every abuse, every manipulation, every false path you’ve tried to lead him down, I’ve told him the truth behind all of it. He sees through you like I always have. You are a poison to this universe and an enemy to all that wish to pursue life. He wants nothing more to do with you.”

  She listened to Paralos’ ravings, but through it all, she kept her eyes locked on Michael. “Is this true?” she asked him.

  “Of course it is,” Paralos said. “How could he ever trust you again?”

  “Is this true?” she repeated, still watching Michael float silently in place.

  Michael’s energy became agitated. “It is,” he said weakly.

  “What?”

  “It is,” he repeated louder. He wobbled on his little-used confidence. “I don’t need you anymore.”

  “Need is not what drove you away.”

  The color of his light strobed uncontrollably, fading between white and red. “You can’t control me anymore. No one can. I’m a god now, like you.”

  “And how did you become a god, my little prince?”

  “Don’t call me that.”

  “Enough,” Paralos said. He floated closer to Michael. “You need to leave, Amara. You’ve lost him.”

  “Not without my answer.” Her eyes bored through Michael. She could see him struggling inside. He fought to hide something. “Tell me.”

  “Tell her nothing,” Paralos said.

  Her champion glowed bright red. She approached him, ignoring Paralos’ flaring light.

  She only needed a moment of time to see it. Michael hadn’t yet learned how to guard his mind. She saw the memories as clear as the cool nights on Pyr. She saw the face of Cerenus before Michael killed him. She heard the pompous god’s final words naming Paralos as the chief architect of his death.

  For the first time, she turned her stare to the old god.

  “This changes nothing,” he said.

  “What?” Michael asked. His shaken voice betrayed his air of confidence. “What is it?”

  “You are a damn fool,” Paralos said. He backed away from both of them. “She knows now.”

  “Knows what?”

  “All I need to,” she answered. She couldn’t help the red streaks firing through her. “Michael, I want you to leave.”

  “I’m not going anywhere. I told you, you don’t order me around anymore.”

  “Leave or he will kill you, as he meant to before I arrived.”

  “Kill…?” Michael drifted in place, seemingly wanting to run despite his defiance. “You were going to kill me?”

  “Don’t listen to her,” Paralos said. “She’s only saying it to drive a wedge between us.”

  “You wanted his power for yourself,” she continued. “You knew he couldn’t keep the source of his power from me, so you meant to kill him.”

  “Liar.”

  “With your combin
ed strength, you could challenge me. All you needed was for him to become a god first. This was your plan all along.”

  Paralos shifted eyes between them. There was a palpable moment where he realized his scheme was at and end and his face registered the shift in his demeanor. His answer came low and steady. “As I said, this changes nothing.”

  She sensed what was coming. In the silence that grew between them, there was a war of words unspoken. She kept her attention on Paralos, eyeing every movement. Beside her, Michael hummed with anxious energy, wanting to run—wanting to fight—but without the knowledge to do either.

  Michael uttered a single thought—Don’t— and it was enough of a disruption for Paralos to make his move. He shot his hand out, meaning to strip Michael of his energy. She knocked his arm away before he could siphon anything. Their eyes locked. With a quick burst of energy, she sent him careening through space. His light raced into the darkness, becoming yet another glimmer amongst the stars. Soon, he stopped, and raced back to meet them.

  “He tried to kill me,” Michael said, his voice deadened by disbelief.

  She clamped a shield of energy around him, trapping him inside. “I will deal with you later.”

  She created a synapse to the farthest point in the universe and pushed Michael through before he could say another word. She destroyed the portal only a second before Paralos made his return.

  The old god stared at the spot where the synapse had been. He shifted his gaze out at the stars, no doubt searching for the other end of the doorway. She had made sure he couldn’t find it.

  “You won’t fight me,” he said. “You know what will happen if we do.”

  “Yes,” she answered. She faced him, letting her light shine brightly.

  “People will die, Amara.”

  “I don’t care.”

  He flared his own light and stood facing her. “Think about your precious rules. You created them to avoid this exact moment. You’ve never betrayed them before and I don’t think you’ll do it now.”

  “The rules were meant to protect the Circle,” she answered, “and you are no longer a part of it.”