“Boris is an idiot, not a villain,” Ketrick said, confirming his mother’s thoughts. “We slaughter Remus and his kind first. They are the ones warping Boris and the Brute clan to become our enemy.”
“And if Boris gets in your way like last night?” Riot asked with a questioning stare. “What then?”
“We can’t save the fool from himself.” Queen Revna took a seat in her high-backed throne chair. “If he gets in the way, then we must kill him, as well. Maybe this is an opportunity to finally get the Brutes to bend the knee.”
“Perhaps.” Ketrick pursed his lips. “But he may be too far poisoned with the thoughts of power Remus is feeding him. They are using fire serpents in combat now. The Boris I know respects those creatures as much as I do. He’s being manipulated, there is no doubt.”
“So what’s the plan?” Riot looked from the queen to her son and back again. “Do we wait for them to attack? Do we go out and find them? What?”
As if to answer her very question, the doors to the room burst open. Kila ran in, taking a knee in front of the queen’s throne. The guards in attendance raised their blasters to fire.
The queen waved their weapons down. “What is it, Kila?”
“A large army of Brutes is reported to be coming along the main road toward Silna.” Kila looked up from her kneeling position. “They will be here tomorrow night.”
“How many?” Ketrick was the first to ask the question they were all thinking.
“Ten thousand strong, with the stranger and his ships.”
Again, Riot remembered her nightmare with a shudder.
The room stood quiet for a moment before Deborah spoke. “How can we get rid of Remus without going to war with Boris and his army? If Remus is the true threat and he’s only using Boris, he’s who we need to focus on first.”
“I can challenge him to single combat.” Ketrick nodded, looking to his mother and Riot for approval. “I’ll take him out, then we can finally be free of his lies and manipulation.”
“That didn’t go so well the first time you met him on the battlefield.” Riot shook her head, ignoring the shock on Ketrick’s face. “Oh, come on, we’re all thinking it. You said he had some kind of energy weapon you’ve never seen before.”
“What course of action would you recommend, Riot?” the queen asked with genuine curiosity. “You’ve seen them on the battlefield now.”
All eyes in the room turned to take in Riot’s thoughtful pose. She felt their stares, realizing they were looking to her for direction. Leadership wasn’t anything new to her, but leadership on this scale was. Riot had led her squad into space, and before that, led a platoon against the Syndicate when they’d invaded, but she had never commanded an entire army.
“We find a way to expose Remus.” Riot’s mind was working overtime. “If that doesn’t work, then we fight. We’ll cut our way through the Brute ranks if it means getting to the Karnayer. Maybe if the Brutes see their god bleed, they’ll come to their senses.”
“Peace talks?” Deborah looked at Riot with an open mouth. “That was the last thing I expected to hear from you.”
“Not talks toward peace.” Riot grinned at the doctor beside her. “Talks geared toward exposing Remus so we can kill him. One way or the other, that pointy-eared freak needs to go.”
“That sounds more like you.” Deborah shrugged, looking over at the queen for a consensus. “What do you think?”
The queen in turn looked to her son.
“I’m for killing the Karnayers without having to harm our own kind, if we can.” Ketrick narrowed his eyes in thought. “I can send a messenger to set up a meeting when they arrive tomorrow night. Either Boris will see Remus for what he is and we can kill him together, or he won’t and we’ll kill them all.”
“Let’s hope we can band together and take out the strangers without having to engage in a full-out war.” The queen nodded to Kila. “Send out a messenger and arrange peace talks for tomorrow night. Have the army ready in case things do not go as well as we hope.”
“Immediately.” Kila turned and speed walked out of the room.
“I hate to ask so much of you.” The queen looked to her son with nothing but love in her eyes as she continued to address Riot and Deborah. “You’ve already given me so much, but will you stand with us as our new allies?”
“Of course.” Deborah bowed her head. “We’re with you.”
Riot understood what Deborah was doing—she was solidifying their pact even further now, because one day, in the future, they would call on these same allies with their red eyes and blunt instruments to help them.
“Thank you.” The queen rose. “Ketrick, would you take Deborah to her quarters? I’d like to speak to Riot alone.”
Riot exchanged shocked glances with Ketrick and Deborah. Whatever the queen was about to tell her she had not been expecting.
“Of course.” Ketrick ushered Deborah from the room, shrugging his shoulders as if to answer the question on Riot’s face. “Deborah, please follow me.”
“Behave yourself,” Deborah whispered to Riot as she followed Ketrick out the door.
When the prince and the emissary from Earth were gone, the queen spoke again.
“Good,” she said and smiled a sad smile as she stood. “Now we can speak honestly.”
36
The queen motioned for Riot to follow her. The two women walked through a back door into the throne room. They crossed two halls, then made a right onto an outside veranda. The area was small, with two stone stools and a stone table. The veranda offered the women an amazing view of the city on the hill.
Silna was much larger than Riot had originally thought. The city started at the base of the hill, where Riot had entered the day before. It rose up until it reached the pyramid where they sat now, but it didn’t stop there. It also sloped down the opposite side. From their vantage point, they could see the tops of thousands of homes. Smoke from cooking fires rose from short chimneys, only to be lost in the sky a moment later.
The queen sat beside Riot, as regal as ever. Her long, white hair speaking of her age, her bright eyes warring against the years she had seen. In those eyes, there was also a sadness.
“Riot, I wanted to speak with you alone because you and I are more alike than you think.” The queen smiled at her with a mischievous grin. “Take that as a compliment, or a curse.”
“I’m sure that’s a good thing.”
“Be that as it may, I want you to know that I realize why you are going so far out of your way to help us. To strengthen our alliance, yes, but you know you’ll need the backing of my people one day, as well.”
“Agreed.” Riot didn’t see the point in lying to the woman, even if she thought she could get away with it. “Earth is not in a war now, but we suspect one is coming.”
“I hold to my word; we will help you when you call for our aid.” The queen stopped, choosing her next words carefully. “However, it will more than likely be my son who answers your call. I’m dying, Riot, only the doctors know, and now you.”
“From what?” Riot felt confusion, then a simple idea came to mind. “Let Wang and Deborah take a look at you. I’m sure they have something that can cure whatever it is you have.”
“I’m an old woman.” Queen Revna waved away the idea like a bad smell. “Much older than I look. It’s my time to go. I’ve trained my son well. You’ve already done so much for us, but I’d ask that you look out for him when the time comes. He’s told me how much he respects you.”
“Respects me?” Riot had said the word as if she didn’t know the meaning. “I’ve known the kid for a day.”
“Regardless of the time you have known him, he says that you’re different.” The queen waggled her eyebrows. “I’ve never seen my son like this before.”
Riot felt a hot flush of heat cover her face. She wasn’t the dating type, or the hook up type, or least of all, the get-fixed-up-by-an-alien’s-mom type. Whatever the queen was getting at, Riot wasn
’t sure how to respond.
“All I’m saying is, when I’m gone, whether I have a few months left or a few years, look out for Ketrick, now that he is part of your alliance.” The queen smiled as fond memories came to mind. “Ketrick is a great man, but he can be a kind of blunt instrument at times. The ‘attack now and plan later’ type. But I’m probably overwhelming you with information you don’t need to worry yourself with.”
“I … I’ll do my best to look out for him.” Riot wasn’t sure if the queen wanted more, but that was what she had to give at the moment. “We should plan for the meeting tomorrow. I think—”
“We will plan.” The queen rose, motioning Riot to follow. “But right now, you need sleep, and tonight … tonight we celebrate a prince brought back from the brink of death and an alliance that will last for centuries to come.”
“Nope, I don’t think I’m going to fit into that. Where’s the rest of it?” Riot looked to Kila with a raised eyebrow. “I’m a Marine, not a supermodel.”
Kila stood in Riot’s room, a plainly decorated square with the usual articles of furniture, a bed against the far wall, a dresser, a mirror, and a large balcony on their left. A small washroom rounded out the essentials for the living space.
At the moment, Riot was shaking her head at the skimpy outfit Kila had brought her. Riot didn’t realize just how much sleep she’d needed. When she awoke, the twin suns had set, and the giant moon now reigned supreme in the sky. Kila had arrived a few minutes later.
“This would be normal celebratory attire.” Kila laid the short, leather skirt, sandals, and what looked like a tube top, onto Riot’s bed. “Everyone will be wearing similar clothing.”
“Yeah, well, Marines aren’t everyone.” Riot shrugged. “I appreciate the gesture, but I’m fine with the clothing I have.”
“As you like.” Kila shrugged, too. “In that case, I can escort you—”
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A horn sounded in the distance.
Riot was on the balcony the next moment, looking for the danger. She was a second away from contacting Evonne via her nanites, when Kila calmed her fears.
“It’s signaling the beginning of the celebration,” Kila said. “The drums and the horn are letting everyone know the feast is about to begin.”
“Right.” Riot felt her heart rate slow and the tension in her shoulders release. “Well, let’s go party. I’m starving.”
37
“Are you freaking kidding me?” Riot and Kila met the rest of the War Wolves at the base of the pyramid before they went out to enjoy the feast. “What are you wearing?”
Wang, Deborah, and Rizzo had remained in their uniforms. Vet, on the other hand, was shirtless with a leather skirt and sandals. If he was worried that he was the only one not in uniform, he didn’t show it.
“Ketrick brought it to me.” Vet shrugged, flexing his own muscles as he did. “He said we were all going to wear the same thing to fit in.”
“Corporal Mohammad Vetash.” Riot shook her head again, trying not to laugh. “Go put some clothes on.”
“Oh, come on, he looks great.” Ketrick walked up to the entrance of the pyramid. He wore shorts and leather sandals. No shirt, as usual. He flipped them off with both hands, a wide grin on his face. “Hello to all. With your permission, Sorceress, I would request that Vet be allowed to wear our traditional clothing.”
“I can change if you want.” Vet looked at Riot with his one good eye. “Say the word.”
“It’s fine.” Riot rolled her eyes. “I just hope you’re wearing underwear under that skirt.”
“Why is he flipping us off?” Wang looked to Rizzo for help in understanding what was going on.
Rizzo just grinned and raised the middle finger on his right hand to Ketrick.
“Please, follow me.” Ketrick lowered his middle fingers and motioned for them to accompany him.
Riot followed the group around the pyramid and to a large, grassy section that sloped up the hill the city of Silna sat upon. Savage Trilords ran to and fro, carrying platters of steaming meats. Riot didn’t recognize any of the food, but the aroma wafting from the dishes smelled heavenly.
Oh, I’m going to have to unbutton the top of my pants tonight, Rizzo signed as he stood on his tiptoes to get a look at a large bowl of something passing that looked like steaks. Hell, yeah.
Ketrick directed the group to three long tables that made a large U. Below these tables, numerous other long, wooden tables were set up in rows. Every table was loaded with massive amounts of food and large pitchers filled with beer and wine.
Hundreds of red eyes looked at Riot and her approaching group. A massive cheer rose up from all those gathered as they walked to the head table where Queen Revna stood waiting for them.
The cheering was so loud, it reminded Riot of a parade more than a dinner. Massive hands clapped and feet stomped the ground.
“We’re freaking celebrities,” Wang said, nudging Deborah in the ribs. “Not too bad, huh?”
“Ow, that hurt.” Deborah rubbed the spot on her ribs where Wang had landed his elbow. “But yes, the recognition from our new allies is nice.”
The cheering continued until Riot and her squad had reached the queen’s side. Ketrick moved to sit next to his mother’s right. Riot was placed on the queen’s left, along with the rest of her squad.
All eyes were on them. The Savage Trilords were not only out in force to show their support, but they were also dressed for the occasion. Long, slicked-back hair and combed beards for the males, along with silver gauntlets and gold chains. The Savage females were adorned with simple yet elegant jewelry in their ears and hair. Some even had piercings in their nostrils and belly buttons.
The air around the scene was alive with gladness and cheer, a sentiment Riot didn’t share. They were less than twenty-four hours away from their meeting with Remus and Boris. If things didn’t go well, they were a day away from war. Still, the people of Silna didn’t seem fazed by that possibility. They laughed and joked with one another, cheered for the strangers who had saved their prince, and clinked large mugs together in celebration.
“Please.” Queen Revna lifted her hands to still the noise. “Take your seats, friends and family.”
The queen wore a long robe of black that was slitted to show off her shapely legs and midsection. A simple silver crown rested on her head. Along her neck was a long chain of silver. Two rings adorned each pointer finger.
The crowd obeyed their queen. A stillness settled over the entire gathering as everyone waited to hear what she had to say.
“For ages, dating back into the very beginning of our history, we have wondered what lies beyond our stars. Now, not one, but two strange visitors have answered that question. While one seeks to destroy us, the other offers a hand in friendship. A friendship that has saved my only son, and a friendship that promises a united front. They will stand with us against the Brutes and the visiting Karnayer force. And together, we will overcome any power that seeks to break our alliance.”
A roar erupted again, this one more violent than the first. Large mouths with long, canine teeth yelled their approval. A wildness Riot wasn’t used to danced in the red eyes of all of those gathered. There was no doubt these warriors would fight and die to the last man or woman if they were asked.
“Now”—Queen Revna raised the tall goblet in front of her—“we drink to friendship with Earth and the humans we now call friends. May our alliance last until the last star fades.”
Riot reached for the mug in front of her. It was filled with a slick, brown liquor that smelled like wood varnish. Riot raised the glass with the rest of those gathered, but just set the edge to her lips without taking a drink. She had a long, messy history with alcohol, and this was neither the place nor time to test her resolve.
Riot waited for everyone to lower their drinks before she did the same.
“Now, let the games and feasting begin!” The queen lifted her hands with a smile.
“Whatever this is, it’s amazing.” Riot shoveled another forkful of brown meat into her mouth. “It tastes like a combination of beef and pork.”
“That’s bowvine.” The queen leaned in with a wink. “There, that’s what the animal looks like.”
The queen pointed to under one of the tables, where an animal that looked like a dog waited for scraps. It was stocky, with four legs and wide paws. A canine face ended in a long snout like a wolf’s. Riot shrugged and nodded along, continuing to enjoy her meal. Beside her, Deborah opened her mouth, letting her own bowvine drop to her plate.
“We’re eating dogs?” Deborah whispered to herself as she practically turned green at the thought. “I can’t eat dog.”
“Easy, Bubbles.” Riot nudged Deborah in the ribs. “You don’t want to be impolite to our new friends.”
“Owie.” Deborah rubbed her ribs for the second time that day. “What’s with you people and the poking today?”
Riot stuffed her stomach until she thought she would burst, and then ate dessert. As the night progressed, there was entertainment ranging from knife throwing skills to wrestling matches.
Wang impressed everyone with his ability with the blade, only coming second place to Hemming, who used a massive blade shaped like a boomerang that hit the bull’s-eye every single time.
Ketrick took first place in wrestling. It was truly amazing how fast his leg had healed; in twenty-four hours, he had gone from his death bed to maneuvering around on the ground and body slamming his opponents.
I’m going to have to remember to get shot up with those healing nanites before our next battle, Riot thought around a mouthful of some delicious dessert called “nutbutter,” which didn’t taste like peanut butter at all, but rather a mix between thick cream and strawberries. These aliens know how to eat.
Bring the Thunder (War Wolves Book 1) Page 14
