RIOT DAWN_Attack of the Space Druids

by Anthony Thackston

  Riot glanced back and watched as Lino’s thrusters flickered out and he was pulled toward the black hole like everything else.

  More of the planet was broken apart and sucked into the black hole. Riot flew over the path to the cave and looked down. It was like watching the effects of a hurricane and an earthquake at the same time. Pieces broke off and were carried away as the jet-propelled arms carried Riot over the path.

  Just feet from the base of the cave, Riot let go of the bar. She dropped to the ground as the arms turned skyward. She looked back and could already see the stars revealing themselves as the dark clouds were pulled into black hole. She pursed her lips together. “Thank you, Lino.”

  Her legs felt like lead weights as she drove them forward through the cave tunnel. She couldn’t tell if she was just tired or if she was starting to feel the pull of gravity.

  Parts of the tunnel were crumbling from the gravity pull, letting in as much light as the dead star had left to offer. The ground shook under her as stone after stone was ripped away. Riot finally saw a flicker of fluorescent light. She dove forward as the last of the ground was ripped out from under her.

  Chapter 34

  Riot couldn’t even make it to her feet as the Aesir Tube buckled under the pull of gravity. There seemed to be a strange fight between the black hole and the ancient transport device. The tube shook and all Riot could do was try and keep herself planted on the platform, fingers digging into the stone floor. Looking over her shoulder, she watched the rest of the dead star hurtle toward the black hole.

  The left-over pieces became smaller and smaller, giving way to the vacuum of space. Riot looked over the edge of the platform and saw nothing but stars beyond it. There was no sign of towers or druids. No four-legged monsters and no magical attacks. Just her and the black hole only three miles away. It shone with the light that was being pulled into it. Riot wondered if anyone else had ever seen such a thing from so close up. The CSID had plenty of enhanced telescope images but nothing as clear as what was in front of her. The most shocking part was the size of it. While bigger than her, even the giant druid had been larger than it, yet it still pulled everything into it.

  “Scanner,” she said, holding her metal arm up. The display flickered a few times before stabilizing. “Find me a control panel for this thing,” she said.

  The platform bucked again and this time it moved toward the black hole.

  “Hey!” she shouted. “Lynch! Can you hear me?”

  There was no response as the Aesir Tube increased speed toward the black hole. Riot could only look on as her own extremities appeared to elongate the closer she got to the mysterious black mass. The platform of the tube looked like it was getting farther away from her and before Riot even knew it, her entire field of vision went dark.

  Riot shut her eyes then opened them, hoping the darkness was just another strange side effect of the gravity well. There was still no change. She couldn’t even tell if her eyes were open anymore. There was no light and no sound. It was as if existence itself had ceased. Her only proof of reality was that she was still aware of herself.

  Riot reached for her metal arm. It took a long time for her hand to finally touch it and when she did, it felt strange. It was as though it had been stretched out and flattened.

  “Weird,” she said. At first, she could not hear herself. Seconds later her word became audible but her voice sounded distorted and far away.

  She kept her head moving around, trying to gauge her surroundings in what felt like absolute nothingness. With no stimulation for two of her primary senses, Riot couldn’t even figure out if she was still on the platform.

  “Scanner,” she said, her voice catching up to her. The scanner on her arm lit up but it was so far away that it was useless as a light source.

  “Hello!” she shouted. There was no return greeting. She was completely alone. Riot dropped to her knees. It was a long drop, almost enough to convince her that she was no longer on any surface but she finally came to rest on something. And considering the other strangeness, it was a relief.

  But that relief was short lived as the full weight of losing everyone for a second time, finally hit her. Riot slammed her fist on the platform. Like dropping to her knees, it took longer than her brain was prepared for. And when she finally connected, a new result occurred.

  A light shone on her and for the first time, Riot could take in the effects of being in the black hole. Terror gripped her as she saw her arms stretched out as they were. The fear didn’t last long as the light grew brighter. Riot had to shut her eyes to keep the blinding luminance out. She covered her eyes with her hand only this time the trip from the platform to her face took a normal amount of time.

  The light got dimmer and Riot could hear the rushing sound of air. That sound quickly gave way to a massive crack of thunder as Riot suddenly felt like she was being shoved forward.

  A cacophony of other sounds swirled around her. Voices and noises came from every direction.

  Riot opened her eyes as the light got dimmer and she could see flickers of objects, just as they had on their way to the druid home world. These objects came faster than the others and with less clarity. Before Riot could even identify whether or not she was seeing a person, she had already seen ten other flickers. The strobing of people and objects was starting to give her a headache.

  “Riot?” a voice said from the dark.

  “Lynch?”

  There was no response. Riot narrowed her eyes trying to focus on any one person but it was useless. The images and sounds were still coming too fast.

  “Riot?” the voice asked again, and this time it sounded less far away.

  The lights of the Aesir Tube sprang to life.

  “Stabilize it!” the voice shouted. This time, Riot was sure it was Axel’s voice. “Get her back!”

  The flickers slowed down, coming with less frequency and the voices had become clearer.

  Suddenly the lights shut off and Riot was thrown back into the dark.

  “Get her back here, now!” Axel shouted.

  The lights popped back on and Riot found herself staring at Axel as he rushed toward her. Nobu was at the control console, still entering commands.

  Axel dropped to the floor, sliding onto the platform. “Riot? Can you hear me? Are you okay?”

  “I’m…I’m fine… I just—I just need some air.”

  Axel stood up, giving her room to reacclimate herself.

  Everything in the space was just as she’d left it. She didn’t know how long she had been gone but Axel and Nobu hadn’t even changed clothes. Her guess was that she’d been gone only a few hours.

  “Where are the others? Diaz, Jessica—”

  Riot shook her head.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “We can bring them back,” Nobu said.

  “Not this time,” Riot told him. “This time it’s permanent.”

  “What happened out there, Riot?” Axel asked. “Not long after you left, towers started popping up everywhere. We lost three squads trying to destroy them. Then the towers just crumbled. Some even disappeared like they were never there.”

  “Mission accomplished,” Riot said, stepping off the platform.

  “Why does this feel like a failure?” Nobu asked.

  Ignoring the question, she kept walking. “If anybody needs me, you know where I’ll be.”

  Chapter 35

  One Week Later

  Light rays from the orbs above the bar shone directly into Riot’s eyes. The little piercing lights had formed a perfect screen, giving Riot both audio and visual reception.

  The news anchor sat in front of a video montage of crumbled towers that were located in various parts of the country. “…One of the strangest events in the history of the world, when several towers that looked like they were from the dark ages, appeared in countries all over the world. Authorities had claimed they were mere publicity stunts for an upcoming major motion picture. But this home video foot
age details a different story.”

  Riot looked away and waved at the sphere, shutting it off. She’d had enough of Space Druids and citadels. She didn’t need to watch someone else’s dealings with them.

  “I count four bottles on that bar,” a gruff voice said. “Maybe you ain’t found what you’re looking for.”

  Riot didn’t turn around. “And what do you think I’m looking for?”

  “A fine-looking woman like you needs a strong hand.” The owner of the voice placed his hand on Riot’s ass.

  She sneered. “You wanna see a strong hand?” The three fingers of her cyber arm clamped into a fist.

  Suddenly, the man yelled in agony.

  Riot spun around to see his arm bent unnaturally behind him and Lino holding him there.

  “Lino?”

  “Hello, Sarge.” Lino turned to the man in the painful wrist lock. “If the Sarge was looking for a strong hand, I doubt yours would do.” Lino spun around, tossing the man into the wall.

  Groaning in pain, the man pushed awkwardly to his feet. “Freaking, robots,” he said. He started to pull out a snub-nose revolver but Lino’s arm transformed into a cannon, its barrel spinning as light from whatever projectile he had loaded began to glow.

  The man slowly placed his revolver back in its holster and backed out the front door.

  “I really need to find a new place to get drunk,” Riot said. “But damn if it isn’t good to see you. How did you get out of the hole?”

  “Hole?” Lino asked.

  “After the mission. The black hole?”

  “You are referring to the fate of my previous model. Dr. Yujiro had made a series of android forms for me. I am model two, complete with a full host of memories and an offensive assortment—”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Riot said as joy began to rise inside her. “Any model is a good one.”

  “What happened to model one?”

  “I’ll tell you about it sometime. Right now, I’m just glad to see you. Robot and all.”

  “I would drink to that.” He shrugged. “If I could drink.”

  Riot smiled. “How’d you find me, anyway?”

  “Agent Lynch informed me of your possible whereabouts. I have been dispatched to bring you in, Sarge.”

  “Bring me in?”

  “Affirmative.”

  “I guess you’re really See-SID all the way, huh?”

  “My memories are my own but I am the property of the Central Supernatural Intelligence Division.”

  “I see.” Riot turned back to the bar and took a swig from her bottle. “Bring me in for what?”

  “The CSID needs you, Sarge. An oil platform has been commandeered by the Daughters of D’Thorn Laviyen.”

  “I thought they disbanded.”

  “This is a new faction. They are threatening to open a rift in the fabric of Earth. All attempts at subterfuge have failed.”

  “Why me?”

  “Agent Lynch said you would know why.”

  Riot tried to hide her smile. “I guess it’s nice to have a private cheerleader.”

  “I do not understand.”

  “Don’t worry about it. So we gotta save the world again, huh? Well, I was promised a new arm,” Riot said. “I think it’s time to collect.”

  “You are agreeing?”

  Riot nodded. “I am. Barkeep, put mine on the Central Supernatural Intelligence Division’s tab. And keep it open, I got a feeling I’m gonna be making more trips here.” She smiled as the bartender nodded.

  “Please hurry, Sergeant Dawn,” Lino said, making his way to the door.

  “Drop the Sarge, Lino. If I’m See-SID, now, it’s Agent, isn’t it?”

  “Very well, I shall update my list of contacts…You are now logged into the central hub. Welcome to the Central Supernatural Intelligence Division, Agent Riot Dawn.”

  Other Titles by Anthony Thackston

  (Available in digital format)

  Science Fiction & Fantasy:

  Ascent- The Ladder

  Ascent- The Steps

  Ascent- The Lift

  Ascent- The Surface

  (Prequel) Ascent- The Column

  The Final Revolution

  War In The Void- Iron Spear

  War In The Void- Nordic Wrath

  War In The Void- Royal Line

  Guns & Dragons- Hunter

  Riot Dawn- Attack of the Space Druids

  Post Apocalyptic:

  Freelancers: Falcon & Phoenix

  Freelancers: Falcon & Phoenix- Most Wanted

  Superhero:

  Scarlet Strike

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