Kai stood aside from the door just as Nikolai shoved it open. The man stood tall, his whiskey glass in hand.
“Can we help you?” Kai asked.
Nikolai smiled. “No more chitchat,” he said. “I believe my orders were to retire for the evening. Get some rest.” He flicked the light switch off, sending the room into darkness, then slammed the door shut behind him.
Kai placed his ear to the door again and waited until Nikolai had retreated back down the hall. “I can't stand this prison any longer.”
“Two more nights,” Hana reminded him, “then we may be returning home.”
“Maybe. Although we shouldn't be so certain. How do we know Raien won't order us to stay here longer?”
While Kai and Hana vented their anger, Daye stood alone in the corner, afraid of the looming war. When he met with Raien earlier, the Shizuno man was just as eager as ever to have White Shadow eliminated. Daye knew that he was running out of time. There were countless lives at risk, and he would not be able to save them all.
Not by himself, anyway.
But he was alone in his quest, with no one to turn to for help, it seemed.
Thirty-six
The van stopped outside the warehouse. Sierra shut the engine off. She grabbed Juliet from the back, who still slept, and took her inside. Skye and Romeo followed not far behind, along with Tango and Echo, who had since woken up. The sombre group opened the front door and slowly marched in, their morale evidently low.
Ren was waiting for them inside. She stared at Sierra with fierce eyes. “What have you done?”
Sierra ignored the question and carried Juliet to her bed.
Skye thought it best to speak first in an attempt to diffuse the already tense situation. “The Tianzu attacked. She didn't have a choice,” he admitted.
Ren cocked her head with surprise. “Don't defend her actions, Skye. She has just single-handedly killed us all!”
“No, she hasn't. It's obvious—the Tianzu want us dead. They attacked us three months ago, and they attacked us again tonight. It's time we start defending ourselves.”
“He's right, Ren,” Tango chimed in, siding with Skye for the first time in quite a while. “I know you're trying to prevent a war with the Tianzu, but I think you're actually just postponing the inevitable.”
“Irrelevant,” Ren dismissed. “Your priority was killing the president. Instead, you were distracted by Daye, and you wasted enough time to allow them to attack you.”
“I had to defend myself,” Sierra muttered as she returned to the room.
“No, you didn't!” Ren screamed back with fury. “You don't have to attack them! We all know you're the strongest one here, and you could have easily exercised restraint.”
Skye clenched his jaw. “You're wrong, Ren. The Tianzu are clearly instigating war. You should stop kidding yourself.”
Ren stared at him condescendingly. “The only one kidding themselves is you, Skye.”
Tango walked in between the pair and held his hands up. “That's enough, Ren. Skye and Sierra aren't to blame. Echo and I abandoned them.”
Skye stared at his teammate, dumbfounded. The confession took him completely by surprise.
“We left to find the Tianzu,” Tango continued. “And we did find them, but we didn't stand a chance against them. We're lucky to be alive.”
Ren rolled her eyes and buried her head in her hands. “You're only just realising that now?” she groaned. “I've been telling you that for months!”
“I know,” he agreed. “I know. And I'm sorry. It's just that ...” he paused and read Echo's face, knowing that he was thinking the same thing. “Since Foxtrot was killed, I just ...” Tears welled in his eyes as the admission came out. “I don't know what I'm doing.”
Ren frowned and stood with her hands on her hips, curious to see where his speech was going.
Tango was unable to hold on to his emotions any longer. He lowered himself to his knees and sobbed loudly. “I'm so sorry,” he cried. “Foxtrot was our brother ... and now he's gone. We let our brother down.”
Echo came to his aid and knelt beside him. Skye and Ren exchanged shocked glances. Since Foxtrot's death, none of them had ever once opened up about their true feelings. They simply moved on to the mission of trying to locate Archie, and never allowed themselves time to grieve.
“It's okay,” Skye said. “I'm sorry too.” He lowered his hand and helped Tango to his feet.
Ren looked into Tango's tearful eyes and saw the pain that he felt. It was pain that she felt too, but she had decided months ago to accept that she couldn't bring their comrade back. All she could do was stop Archibald to ensure Athenia's safety.
Tango wiped his eyes. “I'm sorry,” he apologised again. “I've been obsessed with the Tianzu for the last three months. But when Kai was ready to kill me earlier, I realised that I'd made a mistake. The only way we're going to succeed now is if we stay together.”
Skye couldn't believe his ears. He was unable to hide the smile from his face as the words were said. He placed a brotherly arm around Tango. “Agreed,” he said.
Romeo watched on, confused, but happy to see White Shadow finally get along. In his short time there, he had wondered on several occasions how they were possibly able to function as a team.
Ren looked to the floor and smirked, also relieved to hear the confession. “You're forgiven,” she said, pleased to have her teammate back at long last. “I know you were only doing what you thought was right, and I can't blame you for that.” The smile on her face quickly faded. “But it's too late. We missed our only opportunity to stop the president.”
“Maybe not,” Skye said. “There's still time to find him.”
Ren glanced down at her comm. “The inauguration is less than thirty-three hours away. It's not much time, Skye.”
“I'm not giving up,” he said confidently. “I know you don't believe that Nikolai lured us to East Tower, but it's the only explanation I can think of right now.”
Ren turned away from the group and took a deep breath. “I believe you, Skye. I know the president wasn't there.”
Skye's jaw dropped, as did Tango's and Echo's.
Ren turned back around, reluctant to admit what she was about to say. “Nikolai emailed me ten minutes ago. He congratulated us for putting up a good fight tonight.”
Skye stared back at her, astonished. “What did he say about Archie?”
“He said he purposely created the itinerary so that we'd go to East Tower. He admitted it.”
Skye looked down at the ground, unable to comprehend the words. He theorised that Nikolai had somehow planned the entire evening's events, but wasn't sure if his mind had actually believed it. “How? How did he do it?”
“He didn't say,” Ren shrugged. “Nikolai is no hacker. He must have an inside source. Or maybe he paid someone to do it.”
“Unbelievable,” Tango growled. “He purposely lured us into a trap to kill us. And then he let us go.”
“It's all a game,” Echo said. “He's playing with our lives.”
“I'm not surprised,” Skye said. “None of us should be. But Tango is right in saying that we need to work together, otherwise we're all as good as dead. We have three enemies right now: the president, Black Dawn, and the Tianzu. We need to take them all out.”
Tango and Echo nodded. “We should start with the president,” Tango said, finally agreeing with the mandate. “We only have one day until the dawn inauguration.”
“I'll help you,” Sierra added.
Ren raised an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”
“I said I'll help you. I can help to find your president and Black Dawn, and the Tianzu.”
Ren stared at her, even more puzzled.
“I know what you're fighting for,” Sierra continued. “I understand your cause. But I need your help finding Tahlia.” She looked down at her crossbow, which was still fastened to her left arm. “I thought I could kill her on my own, but ...”
“It's imp
ossible?” Skye suggested, finishing the sentence for her. “I can imagine. We have the same problem when it comes to killing Nikolai.”
Sierra offered a weak smile. “Yes, it's impossible,” she admitted. “I can't get anywhere near Tahlia without her sensing my presence. I have no idea how to stop her.”
“You were close earlier today,” Tango said, thinking back to the short battle outside the promenade in Shangwu.
“I know. It's the closest I've ever gotten to killing her. Which is why I need your help. Tahlia will still be my highest priority, but I'll help you kill your enemies if you can help me kill mine.”
“Absolutely,” Skye said without even considering the proposal. His smile grew even further. “We'll help you in every way we can if you help us back.”
Sierra walked toward the group. “If the Tianzu are coming for us, we should guard the warehouse. I'll take the first watch.” Before anyone could agree with her, she had raced outside and launched herself onto the roof of the base.
Ren and Skye looked at one another, their minds still reeling from the conversation taking place. It had been so long since they were all able to function as one. They both smiled with relief.
“So what's the plan?” Romeo asked.
“Rest,” Skye instructed. “I'll take the second watch. I doubt Nikolai would allow anyone to attack, but Sierra's right—we can't take any chances.”
“And I'll keep digging into Archie's itinerary,” Ren said. “If we're lucky, I might just find something useful. And hopefully authentic, this time.”
Tango and Echo marched off to their living quarters with Romeo, leaving Skye and Ren alone in the remainder of the warehouse.
“I'm a little shocked,” Skye said, laughing softly.
Ren smiled back. “As am I. I wasn't expecting everyone to finally agree for a change.”
“I suppose they all realised the dangers they face. None of us are safe, and we all need to work together if we're going to survive, as Tango said.”
“But our main priority is still the president. We're not going to look for Nikolai or the Tianzu until Archibald Denning is dead. Agreed?”
Skye nodded. “Agreed,” he said. He reached his arm out and shook hands with Ren.
“Then White Shadow is back,” she said with a grin.
Thirty-seven
Sierra sat atop the roof of the warehouse, watching the quiet world around her. It was well after midnight, and Athenia had shut down for another day. In the distance, the towering skyscrapers of Shangwu appeared lifeless and abandoned.
Skye leapt onto the roof and sat alongside her. “I take it you haven't seen anyone?”
“No.”
“I didn't think so. Juliet is still sleeping, so we can't use her tracking ability. You and I will just have to guard everyone the traditional way.”
The moon was bright, flooding the roof and surrounding woodlands with a white glow.
“Earlier you said that you understand our cause,” Skye said. “Why the sudden change of heart?”
She shrugged. “I finally decided to accept that I can't kill Tahlia by myself. It might be a wise move to work alongside you.”
Skye smiled. “Thank you. It's a relief to have a functioning team again.”
Sierra paused, her eyes growing distant for a brief moment. “I'm sorry about what happened in the woods before.”
Skye held a hand up. “Don't be. I'm the one who should be apologising. I know that none of us have been very welcoming. Our group has been divided since Foxtrot was killed.”
“You're forgiven. But I still regret what I did. I shouldn't be taking my hatred out on anyone except Tahlia. It's just that ... what she did to me ... it's unforgivable.”
“It's okay,” Skye said, “you don't have to tell me what she did. I admit that I'm very curious to know, but it's also none of my business.”
“I'll tell you one day,” she said. “But not right now. It's far too painful to even think about.”
“Well, if you ever want to tell us, you can. Only when you're ready though.”
Sierra nodded. “Thank you. It's not a pleasant story. In a past life, Tahlia and I once fought for the same cause. In fact, it was a similar cause to White Shadow's. Maybe that's another reason why I'm happy to help you. We can't stand for corruption.”
“No, we can't,” Skye agreed. “Archie needs to go. And time is running out.”
Sierra looked at the black trees around them. “What will you do if you can't stop him in time? You only have one more day.”
Skye cringed. He needed no reminder of how long until the inauguration began. “I don't know. Hopefully we won't have to find out.” He turned and faced her. “What about you? What will you do after Tahlia is dead?”
Sierra stared blankly at her surroundings. “I'm not sure. I think about it quite often. I could always return to my original cause. There's still plenty of work to do back in Viesta Roux. But then again, maybe there's no point. Everyone I cared about is now dead.” Her eyes became distant and began to well with tears. “The only cause I believe in now is killing Tahlia.”
Skye offered her a weak smile. It brought him relief that he finally felt close to her to be able to converse about deeper issues. No doubt the others would still tiptoe around her with their opinions, so as to not enrage Sierra, but Skye was no longer afraid of her. Like himself, she was a shengxian who had her own feelings, and was just as vulnerable to the stresses of everyday life.
“Tonight reminded me how dangerous the situation is,” Skye said, changing the subject back to the one plaguing his mind. “Kai and Hana were willing to kill. Maybe my immunity from Nikolai clouded my judgement after all.”
“Maybe,” she agreed.
It was liberating for Skye to express himself freely, but he was reluctant to speak his mind constantly, lest he risked turning into Nikolai, a man who spoke whatever peculiar thoughts popped into his head at any given time. Of course, Skye also knew that Nikolai, who was virtually immortal, need not concern himself with offending anyone.
“I don't understand any of it, Sierra. What went wrong tonight?”
“You're confused that we were attacked?”
“No,” he corrected. “I'm confused because Nikolai admitted that he fabricated the president's itinerary. How could he have possibly done that?”
She shrugged lightly, offering no explanation.
“I wonder where the president is right now,” he thought aloud.
“Maybe Nikolai killed him?”
Skye let out a sarcastic laugh. “I doubt that. Nikolai hates Archie even more than I do. If he had killed him, he'd probably be knocking on our door with an expensive bottle of wine in one hand, and a severed head in the other.” The image almost brought a smirk to his worried face. “Besides, Nikolai has never killed anyone. If anything, he would've ordered Night to do it for him.”
Skye continued staring up at the beautiful moon. The moon was of significant importance for his home country, Xiaguo. The ancient imperial capital was named Yuejing after the Xiayu word for the moon. Even the continent itself was, still to this day, referred to as Yuezhou.
“But it doesn't explain how he created that itinerary,” he continued.
“Maybe Nikolai's working with the president,” Sierra suggested.
“I doubt that very much,” he scoffed at the ludicrous accusation. “Nikolai has been searching for that man for a year. The last thing he would be doing is entering into a partnership with him.”
“You're the one who's always saying how Nikolai is playing a game with you. Maybe this is all one of his plans?” She looked at him with serious eyes.
“No. Impossible. I know Nikolai better than anyone else.”
Sierra looked down at her wrist comm and observed the time. “Since you're here now, I'm ending my shift,” she said, no longer interested in listening to Skye ramble on. Before Skye could even bid her goodnight, she had leapt over the edge.
He lay alone on the slanted roof,
still staring up at the celestial body above. It often brought him a sense of tranquillity whenever he felt stressed. He permitted himself a large smile as he thought about the image of Nikolai and Archibald in the same room, discussing politics and philosophy. He let out a tired laugh as he considered how ridiculous a thought it was. Nikolai detested Archibald for what he had done; Nikolai was never the same after the riots last year. He had become audacious, maniacal.
If it were true though, he pondered, it would be the perfect opportunity for Nikolai to come into power. The great man had often spoken to Skye of power and control, and how to wield it. After the riots, he told Skye that people have the freedom to think, and are therefore dangerous, and consequently need to be controlled. This was his sadistic vision of a utopia, albeit an immoral and unjust one. But Nikolai, despite being physically strong and intelligent, wielded no political power, so befriending the leader of a nation would certainly be an easy way to exert one's authority in a clandestine manner.
As the moon disappeared behind a dark cloud, the smile on Skye's face began to fade. Suddenly, he felt as though he couldn't breathe. The air had been knocked from his lungs. His body began to tremble, his mind began to race. He lifted himself to a sitting position.
“No,” Skye whispered, shaking his head from side to side. It's impossible, he thought. He tried to process the concept of Nikolai carefully procuring his master-plan; controlling Archibald, scrutinising and overseeing his every move, and threatening him with a very painful death if he didn't comply. The notion was a bizarre and brazen one, but was eerily plausible. A dizzying wave fell over Skye as his mind started to believe the terrifying idea. It made more sense than any other explanation he could think of, and it was in Nikolai's nature to act in such a sporadic and mysterious manner.
His breathing became loud. Every cell in his body began to shake violently as the realisation dawned on him. Nikolai had been playing him the entire time. Sierra was right; it was all a game, and Skye had already lost. Nikolai was multiple moves ahead at every moment, and had abruptly decided earlier that day to revoke any possibility of safety at the warehouse. It had become a perilous situation, and anyone could be killed at any moment by Black Dawn.
Eternity's War (Books 1-3) (Eternity's War Boxsets) Page 20
