Out of Orbit- The Complete Series Boxset

by Chele Cooke

  His knees buckled, dropping down to the stones, as he crumpled to the side in a graceless arc. His head hit the ground and his hand fell outstretched towards his father, towards his sister, towards Georgianna. Blood pooled across the paving in a spreading lake. Edtroka’s eyes were still open, but his mouth was slack, his body limp.

  Georgianna was screaming. It wasn’t loud enough. She wasn’t strong enough. It was only at the pull of the cord attaching her and Keiran to the execution post that she realised she had been trying to reach him. It held her firm at the neck, crushing her throat until she could hardly breathe. The screaming came in strangled and soundless retches. She had to reach him. He couldn’t be gone.

  A second shot, then another and another. But Ehnisque wasn’t holding her gun out any more. She jerked and spun around. One of the Adveni soldiers slumped to the ground and his gun clattered out of his hand.

  Each shot created five blasts, rebounding between the tall buildings. One cry became two, ten, a hundred, until the cacophony was all Georgianna could hear. Somewhere in there were her own screams.

  Ehnisque dived into her father. They tumbled to the ground as a spray of blood gushed out behind them. The ring of soldiers raised their weapons and entered attack stance. They turned and aimed high and low, searching for the shooter. Maarqyn was down, on the ground, blood flowing from his hip. He shouted orders. Tugging against the cord, Georgianna screamed over all of them.

  “Get off me!”

  Keiran tightened his grip around her waist and pulled back, dragging her towards the ground. Shots came thicker, faster; a din that drowned out everything except the screaming. A storm of boots rumbled in from the opposite end of the square. Adveni scattered, the unarmed ones running. They dropped, arms over their heads, blood bursting around them. The square was flooded with liquid red, spreading and swirling like the grey sky above.

  Keiran abandoned restraint and flung Georgianna to the ground, landing on top, pinning her down. Through the crush and the chaos, she could still see Edtroka’s wide eyes and his hand reaching for her.

  “Edtroka!” she screamed again. “Stop!”

  Everything was blurring, light spotting before her eyes. A wall of indistinguishable bodies moved into the square, each holding a weapon, firing indiscriminately. A blanket of bullets soared through the air towards them.

  Edtroka’s body jerked and his blood splattered, splashing into the growing flood. Bullets struck his back and legs. The collar pulled tight on Georgianna’s throat as she tugged against it. She wriggled out from underneath Keiran and scrambled at the cord. Grasping it with both hands, she yanked so hard that it slid through her palms with a searing burn. She didn’t feel it. She had to reach him. She clawed at Keiran’s arm. He had to understand, he had to let her go to him. Scrambling to her feet, Georgianna yanked at the cord again. It didn’t budge.

  The man who appeared before her was bulky and muscled. He had come from behind them, a knife in his hand. He was too short to be an Adveni but Georgianna didn’t care. She swung a punch. It didn’t matter whether she hit him or not, she just wanted to keep him away. The man swerved back and caught her by the shoulder. Georgianna let out a howl on reflex but didn’t care about the pain of the mark.

  “It’s me,” he hissed in her ear, wrapping his arm around her neck. He held her back against him, grappling for a grip. She recognised the voice, even though it sounded so taut that it would snap with the slightest touch.

  Keiran pushed himself up to his knees, hunching his body and covering his head with his arms. Dhiren flicked the hunting knife, severing the cord between Georgianna and Keiran, and then once again, cutting them free of the post. He released his hold and tried to push them further from the fighting.

  “Run!”

  “Give me a weapon!” Keiran roared over the noise, jumping to his feet. Whatever weakness he had from Maarqyn’s torture was gone. There was a red fury in his face.

  “You need to run,” Dhiren repeated, shoving Georgianna. “Go!”

  She stumbled away from him. The world pulsed and throbbed with noise: the thump of boots shuddered through her body; music of screams sang in her ears; a beat of gunfire drove her feet onwards.

  “I’ll kill her!” she screamed back. She snatched at Dhiren’s knife.

  Dhiren twisted away from Georgianna. His hand found her throat, and he pushed her aside with such force that she hit the post with a yelp.

  “He’s dead, George!”

  His voice cracked and she didn’t care.

  Georgianna flung herself at him, knocking him backwards to the ground. She didn’t care that he was supposed to be a friend. If he was stopping her getting to Edtroka, he was no ally of hers. She grabbed his wrist and grappled for the knife. She needed to do this, he would understand that. He should understand that. They needed to pay. For Edtroka, for her family. They couldn’t live, not after this.

  Screams echoed all around. The wall of men advancing into the square had spread, like rivers bursting their banks and flowing into the crowd. They came from all directions, running between the buildings and out into the open. Adveni wrestled guns from their fallen comrades. They hunched briefly, then ran.

  Dhiren grabbed Georgianna and rolled her onto her back. He held her firm and she couldn’t breathe for the weight of his body. She screamed and kicked. She raked at his face with her broken nails.

  Then, the knife was pressing hard into her throat and she froze. His teeth were bared and there was such fury in his eyes that she didn’t dare breathe.

  “He just sacrificed himself for you, you stupid vtensu!” Dhiren roared. “I will knock you out and carry you if you do not move now!”

  Tears poured down her cheeks and into her hair. The fight was leaving her as quickly as it had overcome the rest of the square. She nodded. Dhiren withdrew the knife and was up in an instant. Stretching out his hand, he yanked her to her feet and wrapped his arm over her head, pushing her down low. He drew a gun and tossed it to Keiran.

  “Oprust!” he shouted. “Go!”

  Gunfire rained down over their heads, bullets bouncing around their feet. A burning pain stabbed through Georgianna’s side. She screamed and set off after Keiran, her feet pounding against the concrete. A splatter of blood now followed each step, the pain throbbing with every beat of her pulse. She kept her arms over her head, not daring to look where she was running. Dhiren kept pace at her side, tugging a device from his pocket.

  “I got them! Get out!” he yelled into it.

  The garbled reply was barely audible over the gunfire. Dhiren pushed Georgianna sideways and jumped over a body. Friend or foe it didn’t matter; it was abandoned to the ground and the blood behind them.

  Lifting the device again, Dhiren pointed it down the street ahead of them. Keiran turned and shot twice into the crowd, barely missing a step. Dhiren squeezed the device again.

  “Cartwright, are they dead?”

  Gunfire crackled from the device, almost as loud as the shots following them across the square.

  “Two hits,” a voice roared back. “Keep going! They’re waiting.”

  Georgianna glanced over her shoulder as they reached one of the streets curving off between the buildings. Above the chaos, silhouetted against the grey sky, a man stood on the rooftop of the far building, a rifle hanging from his hand.

  In the centre of the square, eyes open, hand still stretched towards them, Edtroka lay motionless as the fighting raged around him.

  Scorch marks spiked from the entrance to the tunnel, where tongues of long-dead flames had licked along the ground and up the walls. Georgianna’s entire body ached—from running, and the effort of holding back the urge to scream. Dhiren set a merciless pace as he disappeared down the steps and into the black of the tunnels. In front of Keiran, Georgianna steadied herself against the wall as she descended. At the bottom, Dhiren grabbed a lamp that had been left by the wall. He held it up and pushed on, his footsteps crunching in the centre of the pool of orange l
ight.

  The stench of smoke and flames made her eyes water. It had been weeks since the Adveni sent fires burning through the tunnels, but their memory remained in every gasp of air. She drew her shirt up over her nose and mouth, her breath hot and wet against the fabric. Dhiren led them down a wide tunnel, turning his head this way and that without stopping.

  “Where are we going?” Keiran panted.

  “Belsa,” Dhiren said.

  Keiran fell silent but for his heavy breaths as they struggled to keep up with Dhiren’s pace. Georgianna’s legs were close to buckling with almost every step, the stinging burn of the bullet shooting into her side matching the heat in her shoulder. This was coupled with the aftermath of the torture and lack of food, making her too weak to keep a steady running rhythm. Dhiren finally slowed and ran his hand along the wall. Keiran overtook him and reached for the lamp.

  “I know where it is.”

  Georgianna saw Dhiren’s jaw tighten, but he handed over the lamp. He drew his knife, turned it over in his hand and fell back. Keiran didn’t need to slow to find the tunnel entrance. Normally, neither would Georgianna, but she was glad that navigation wasn’t her role, today.

  They slowed to a walking pace. Georgianna clutched her side and pulled her shirt down, gulping down mouthfuls of smoky air. Her throat burned with every breath. Tears ran down her cheeks and splashed onto her shirt. She was glad for the smoke, even though she knew the acrid air was not the reason the tears kept coming.

  Lifting the lamp high above his head, Keiran ducked into the old Belsa entrance. In the slim tunnel, Georgianna ran her hand over the wall, letting it lead her along.

  “Halt! Who is it?”

  Georgianna walked into Keiran’s back as he came to a stop. Steadying herself, she brushed her thumb under her eyes. A red light blinked on Keiran’s chest and he looked down at it before lifting his head.

  “Zanetti.”

  The red light blinked and vanished. A man strode forwards, his legs and torso emerging into the light. He held his hands out and Keiran sobbed with laughter.

  “Eli!” He embraced his closest friend and Wrench returned the hug with a tight grasp, gripping Keiran’s shirt. When he pulled back, his gaze searched Keiran’s, finding each mark that Maarqyn had given him.

  He finally turned away from Keiran and looked at Georgianna, then Dhiren.

  “Did it go according to plan?”

  Dhiren pushed past them.

  “E’Troke’s dead. Let’s get this done. Where is he?”

  “I am here.”

  The man who stepped out of the darkness was tall and stocky. His mousy hair was plastered to his head with sweat and his smile faded the moment he saw Dhiren. He was Cahlven, Georgianna remembered; the technician who had set up the table with the map on it. He clapped Wrench on the shoulder.

  “Come on.”

  The technician led them to a wider section of the tunnel. They had set up a stash of supplies on the floor and Georgianna noticed two distinct piles. Following them into the wash of light from two more lamps, she stood in the centre of the tunnel, looking around. Keiran was already wavering and Dhiren stepped forwards, helping him to sit. The technician gave Georgianna a tentative smile and indicated that she should sit, too. Georgianna slumped down and Dhiren returned to the mouth of the narrow tunnel, turning his knife over and over, his face hidden in shadow.

  “You remember me?” the technician asked. “Tohma?”

  “I remember.”

  “Alright. I need you to stay very still.”

  Georgianna nodded.

  He picked up a sheet of sticky material and slid it beneath the collar, wrapping it around her neck. She stared at the wall as he drew out a knife and pried away a small section of the collar. Dropping it behind him, he moved the lamp closer, brushing her hair away and leaning close.

  She stared at the lamp next to her, casting shadows in long strips across the ground. The pool of light burned orange and red, then dark red, and when Georgianna closed her eyes, she could see his face; the wide eyes that stared into nothing.

  He had come for her. Sacrificed himself. She had tried to convince him of his own importance, but he had still put her safety first.

  “You need to stay still,” Tohma said again.

  Georgianna didn’t realise she’d moved. She lifted her hands to find them trembling. Everyone was staring at her as her breath came in sobs and tears burned across her skin. She’d not realised she was crying.

  “She needs a minute,” Keiran said.

  “No, she doesn’t,” Dhiren said. “Get on with it!”

  Covering her mouth, she took a few steadying breaths before lifting her chin, dropping her hand into her lap.

  “Dhiren, come on, give her a—”

  “We’re vulnerable here,” Dhiren said. “She can cry all she likes. It isn’t going to help. Get on with it!”

  Georgianna couldn’t meet Dhiren’s gaze as she hiccupped and covered her mouth again.

  “I’m okay,” she whispered through her fingers. “Do it.”

  Tohma cut the first wire. The first shock was little more than a tap against her skin. After that, a series of tiny zaps came in quick succession as he set about disconnecting one wire at a time. Opposite, Keiran’s fingers twitched and he grasped his knees as Wrench worked on his collar.

  Tohma made quick work of the wires within the collar. Georgianna counted the time along with her breathing, trying to keep it even. She needed to focus on something, anything other than the look of fear on Edtroka’s face as his sister pulled the trigger. She’d only seen him that scared once before, when it was Dhiren who held the gun. She could hear the crack of his voice as he pleaded, told him he had promised. Exactly what had he promised? Would she ever know?

  She remembered the cocky Adveni who had mocked her, claiming that she was always on time when working for him. He had been so charming and confident, and now he was gone.

  “And yet you run every time I send you a message. Must be my irresistible charm. I should have that looked at. You don’t happen to know a medic who can give me something, do you?”

  Georgianna sniffed and dug her nails into her palms as tears welled into her eyes.

  “I am sorry,” Tohma said. “I know it hurts.”

  She wanted to tell him that he had no idea how much it hurt. Her chest tightened, her stomach clenched. She could see Edtroka there; the certainty with which he had strode into the square, the arrogance in his voice as he had spoken to Maarqyn. He must have believed his father would save him, that nobody could be that merciless. Maybe he believed that his sister might flinch and remember that he was her blood. They had betrayed him.

  She had betrayed him.

  “I am nearly there. This last one will hurt.”

  Dhiren fell to his knees and snatched Georgianna’s hand from her knee, grasping it tight in both of his own. Tohma jumped back in surprise.

  “Let go,” he said. “You will not be helping her, only hurting yourself.”

  He looked at Georgianna but didn’t let go of her hand. His eyes were red and raw, glowing in the lamplight. His teeth clenched so hard that his jaw shook.

  “I’m counting on it,” he growled. “Do it.”

  The pleading she had seen in Edtroka as the two of them had faced off in the cell was in Dhiren’s face now. There was a desperation in his eyes that Georgianna recognised, and was now becoming a part of her. Physical pain was nothing compared to the hole opening up inside her. She gripped Dhiren’s hands and nodded.

  “Do it,” she repeated.

  Tohma nodded and slid the knife underneath the last wire. Opposite, Keiran gave a yell and panted through his pain. Dhiren’s expression only hardened.

  Lightning shot through Georgianna’s body. It rebounded off her bones; sparks joining together, gathering strength. Sparks jumped from her skin into Dhiren’s. He didn’t mirror her cries or look away. His grip only tightened, his nails digging into her flesh. The collar clattered
to the floor behind her.

  The echoes of the shock immediately began to disappear, one by one, but the pain didn’t fade from Dhiren’s face. If anything, it intensified. Tears slipped over his lashes and down his cheeks.

  He was shaky when he got to his feet. Georgianna’s fingers slipped from his grasp, and as she panted and trembled, he walked away into the darkness without a word.

  “You okay?” Tohma asked. He gave Georgianna a reassuring smile as he gathered his things.

  She wasn’t sure she was okay, but she nodded all the same.

  “We should get going,” Wrench said, packing his supplies carelessly into a bag.

  Georgianna took a deep breath and climbed to her feet. Leaning on the wall for support, she shook each leg in turn, hoping the tingling would go before she had to move. Tohma finished packing his bag and it took a few seconds of his holding out his hand before she remembered the sticky material around her neck. She peeled it away and handed it over. It was slick with sweat and tears, but Tohma stuffed it into the bag without comment.

  “We are done,” he said to Wrench with a nod, slinging the bag over his shoulder.

  Keiran came forwards and pried her from the wall.

  “Are you okay?” he asked. Georgianna shook her head. His smile was apologetic as he nodded.

  “Come on.”

  Tohma had already disappeared into the darkness before Georgianna thought to look around.

  “What about Dhiren?”

  “Leave him be,” Keiran said. “He’ll catch up.”

  “He knows where we’re going,” Wrench said. “Don’t worry, George.”

  Keiran and Wrench grabbed the two lamps. Georgianna was about to follow when she turned back. Crouching, she picked up the collar and turned it over in her fingers. As she followed the others, she swept out her foot carefully with each step until she found Keiran's collar. She let both devices hang from her hands as she moved along the tunnel. Keiran glanced at her over his shoulder a few times but didn’t comment.

  When they slipped out into the wider tunnel, Georgianna lay the broken collars at the entrance. It wouldn’t matter now if anyone found them.