by N. W. Harris
“I understand my uncle is inside,” Pelros said, sizing up the soldier and deciding how best to get around him.
“Yes, sir.” The soldier hesitated. “Sorry, sir. I’m on strict orders not to let anyone who has not been preapproved by the council to enter the building. It’ll just be a moment.”
The soldier looked behind him and gave a signal to a clerk seated at the reception desk inside. The clerk nodded and hurried off, likely to get permission from the council for Pelros to enter.
“The council buildings have always been open to all citizens and soldiers,” Pelros objected. “What’s going on here?”
“I apologize, sir,” the soldier stammered. “I’m just following orders.”
“Whose orders?” Pelros controlled his frustration, wanting to gather as much information as he could before facing his uncle’s political enemies.
“The council’s,” the soldier replied, his tone implying he was uncomfortable with the source of his orders.
Weary with the exchange, Pelros crossed his arms, slumped onto a bench against the building, and waited. It wasn’t this soldier’s fault—he was just following orders. Struggling to keep his eyes open and not fall asleep on the bench, he glanced at the other soldiers standing guard nearby. They wore the same unsettled expression. They were confused and concerned. It wasn’t normal for their orders to come from the council; they were used to being under the command of the general and his officers.
“Commander Pelros,” Gentras said, coming out of the council building. “Why, you are resilient. We thought you dead.”
“I like to think I inherited a knack for survival from my uncle,” Pelros replied, trying to be pleasant though he wanted to tear into the elder.
“Speaking of the general,” Gentras replied, “I suppose you’d like to see him?”
“Straight away,” Pelros said, expecting an excuse as to why he couldn’t.
“He’s in his office,” Gentras said, leading the way into the building. “I have some other affairs to attend to. Perhaps we will have a chat later?”
“Indeed,” Pelros replied, unable to keep the ominous undertone out of his voice. “I imagine we will.”
He wanted to say more, to challenge the aristocrat and ask why his uncle had been restricted to the council building. However, it surprised him that he was allowed such easy access to the general, and he didn’t want to risk that opportunity with a premature confrontation.
Pelros didn’t see any soldiers inside the council building, only aristocrats and their staff. Many of them gave him surprised glances, those looks that showed they were shocked he hadn’t been killed. He ignored them, entering the stairwell a staffer directed him to. He stood at the bottom of the steps and looked up, wondering if he should ask someone to help him. He decided against it, knowing they’d just use his weakness against him.
Holding his injury with one hand and the handrail with the other, he slowly climbed the steps, expending what little energy he had left. He’d never been in the stairwell and didn’t even realize the building had them. Climbing to the second floor, he paused and rubbed his sore thighs.
“The gods do punish us so,” an arrogant voice said from above. “Taking our elevators from us in this horrendous gravity.”
“Kilnasis,” Pelros observed.
The wiry elder who loved aggravating his uncle came down to the landing. The council member undoubtedly had his hand in the business of restricting the general to the council building.
“We will get stronger,” Pelros replied, standing tall and trying to hide his exhaustion. “And that’ll be the gods’ doing.”
Catching his breath, Kilnasis studied him with his cold, piercing eyes.
“I’ve just come from the general,” Kilnasis said. “He’s meeting with his officers, planning our defense.”
“I expected he’d be at the base of the ship, or out in the city at least.” Pelros maintained a blank expression and tried to keep the anger out of his eyes. “He’s not one to linger behind the lines when a battle is imminent.”
“Yes, well. Congratulations on your promotion,” Kilnasis said in his usual tone of condescension. “A well-deserved token of the citizens’ appreciation for your service.” He said the last word with more emphasis, subtly putting Pelros in his place.
“Thank you, sir.” The commander smiled as convincingly as he could. His uncle had taught him to hide his true feelings around the aristocrats. He’d need their votes someday if he wanted to be promoted to general. Right now, he barely cared about that. Their power lust risked the lives of the people he had sworn to protect.
“You’ll understand that, under the circumstances, we had no choice but to ensure the citizens’ wishes are met,” Kilnasis said.
“I shall endeavor to,” Pelros replied.
The aristocrat studied him a moment longer before smiling as if he were satisfied.
“Very well,” Kilnasis said. “Carry on.”
Pelros nodded and climbed the steps to the third floor, using the anger sparked by the aristocrat as fuel. His uncle would’ve been proud. He’d wanted nothing more than to challenge the council members, to demand his uncle be allowed to come and go as he pleased. Such an approach would be unwise. They might’ve prevented him from seeing the general.
Exiting the stairwell, Pelros let out a long sigh. He didn’t see a reason why he’d have to climb any higher in the ship. After their meeting, he expected his uncle would order him back down to prepare the human army for battle. However, he’d need a few hours of sleep before he could handle much more.
Chapter Thirty-One
The general’s office was at the end of the hallway, and his door was open. Officers blocked his view of the desk and of his uncle. He resisted the urge to run down the hall, reminding himself he had to retain the composure expected of his rank. He missed his uncle, and had expected he might never see him again after being captured by the rebels. In the office, he stepped around the officers into his uncle’s view.
“By the gods!” Athos said, rising to his feet. “My…” He paused and looked at the officers, seeming barely able to retain his composure. “I’ll need to debrief the commander. Please excuse us.”
They followed the general’s gaze, their eyes widening upon seeing Pelros. Quick to obey Athos’ request, the officers filed out of the room. A couple of them clapped the commander on the shoulder as they passed. The last one out closed the door, which had to been slid manually with some obvious effort.
“My boy,” Athos said, embracing Pelros. “I thought we had lost you.”
“I was raised to be a survivor,” Pelros replied, his eyes moist.
“That you were,” Athos agreed, holding him at arm’s length and studying him as if to make sure he was in one piece. “Tell me all that has happened to you. The last I saw, you lost power in the transport and the slave soldiers turned on you. How did you get out of that mess?”
“Well, sir,” Pelros began. “My transport landed gently enough and before the slave soldiers could break into the pilot’s cabin. As the gods would have it, I touched down in the camp of the humans who were responsible for the destruction of the other slave recruit ships.”
“That is luck,” the general replied. “You must’ve been able to gather some useful intelligence.”
“Indeed.” Pelros suddenly felt nervous about telling his uncle who he’d encountered. “Your speculation was correct. The humans who attacked us were led by Anunnaki rebels.”
“I knew it,” Athos said, pinching his chin. “Go on. Which one of those criminals orchestrated the attacks?”
“Sir…” Pelros hesitated, his stomach knotting. “It was your brother.”
“My brother?” Athos’ eyes widened, his expression confused. “I don’t understand.”
“He survived the war on Anu and found his way here,” Pelros explained.
The general stared at him, the color fading from his expression. He rounded his desk and fell into his seat,
appearing to have instantly doubled in age.
“The gods do like their surprises,” Athos said, his voice quiet and weak. “What did he have to say to you? Did he know who you were?”
“Yes, he did,” Pelros replied. “He tried to convince me of the validity of his cause. He disgraces our people and our gods-given right to lead. He believes we are not the superior species, that it is not our place to bring order to the universe. And that this green entity has come to punish us for our way of life.”
“He is still delusional,” Athos said with disappointment. “That will never change.” He shifted in his seat, his color beginning to return as his shock faded. “Has he acted alone?”
“I don’t have proof that any other rebels survived the war with him,” Pelros replied, sitting in a seat on the other side of the general’s desk. “But he has cloned himself multiple times. And there were female clones of a different phenotype, so I assume at least one other rebel must’ve come here with him, though I didn’t see her.”
“One more crime to add to the list,” Athos said, not sounding surprised. “What do they plan to do?”
“I don’t think they have any real plan,” Pelros replied. “The green entity that downed my transport has attacked them several times and is pushing them toward the Pegasus. It seems to want them to fight us. One of the freed slaves said the entity wants them to exterminate the Anunnaki.”
“We expected something of that nature,” the general replied. “It claims to be holding some sort of trial to determine if we are worthy of survival. We must fight with everything we have to prove our will to live exceeds any adversity it can put in our way. Meanwhile, we are searching for a weakness in this new enemy, something we can use against it. How did you manage to escape?”
“I waited until they were outside the city, and then fled while they rested,” he replied. “I think I convinced Jones he was swaying me toward his cause.”
“Jones?” Athos asked.
“It is what your brother calls himself now,” Pelros replied. He’d never learned his father’s real name. Due to the severity of his crimes, the supreme council had erased his name from all records after he was presumed dead. Pelros believed his uncle had something to do with that, hoping people would forget his relationship to the rebel as well. “What is happening here? Why have the aristocrats restricted you to the council building?”
“They fear I will not relinquish command of the people once this conflict is resolved,” Athos said, sighing. “They are so shortsighted and power hungry.”
“Do they not understand that you must be on the field if we are to win the coming battle?” Pelros was confused. He couldn’t imagine why his uncle would tolerate the royals’ behavior with so much at stake. “We cannot survive this situation without martial law.”
“I don’t intend to stay here once the battle begins, and I expect the royals will be begging me to leave when the blood begins to flow,” the general replied, his voice growing deeper with warning. Pelros was not to question his judgment on this issue.
“This will be a very different battle than we’ve ever experienced,” Athos said. “We must keep the Anunnaki in this city safe. I’ve ordered all loyal humans to come to the Pegasus so we can focus their efforts on protecting our people.”
Pelros listened, soaking in the wisdom his uncle had earned over countless battles. As the general spoke of his plan, the commander’s confusion and fear dissipated. He hadn’t wanted to admit it to himself, but since the green entity said the Anunnaki would be punished, he’d expected his people to be exterminated. He would’ve fought to keep them alive, as was his duty, keeping his pessimisms about their future to himself. The general made him believe that somehow, they would survive. His plans extended beyond the battlefield. He anticipated the aristocrats’ behavior and ensured they would accept his command when he needed to unite every Anunnaki on the Pegasus against the enemy.
“You want me to lead the battle until the council begs you to go out to protect them?” Pelros asked once the general had finished.
“Yes, this will ensure the cohesion of our people after the battle,” the general replied. “And it will make you the hero. The people will never again bring up your heritage in conversation; they will only speak to your glory.”
Pelros walked over to the arched window that afforded a view of the avenue below. It led straight to the stairs on the side of the ship that Pelros had come up. Warm light bathed the ship’s city. He stared at the black curtain, the darkness surrounding the ship and likely covering the entire planet. The light was too bright. He couldn’t see anything beyond. But he sensed the approaching wall of green flames, incinerating everything in its path. It would press the humans against the Pegasus and they would fight each other, floating the ship in a sea of blood. The thought made a sense of hopelessness and panic boil in his chest, and he tried to suppress it. His training had taught him to only focus on what he could control, and not to dwell on things that would distract him from the mission at hand.
“What if the council doesn’t let you leave the building?” Pelros looked back at his uncle. “At what point do I have soldiers come in and bring you out? We shall need your leadership if the human slaves can’t stop the assault.”
“Do not worry—they will beg for me to take to the field soon after the fighting starts,” Athos repeated, chuckling wearily. “Of that, I can assure you.”
“Yes, sir,” Pelros replied, returning his uncle’s smile. “It gives me new life to see you again, Uncle.”
“For me as well,” Athos replied, stepping closer and putting his hands on Pelros’ shoulders. “It gives me hope. The gods are still with us, son.” Athos hugged him. “Now go and get some sleep. Once you are rested, I’ll need you to prepare the soldiers for battle.”
“Yes, sir,” Pelros replied, saluting his uncle.
Fearing tears might puddle in his eyes, he hurried out of the room and back down the hallway. It always made his heart swell when Athos called him son. He only wished it were true, that he wasn’t cloned from the rebel trash who was marching toward the Pegasus, surrounded by humans he’d trained to fight his own people.
Excited by the opportunity to finally get some rest, he made his way out of the building and down the avenue that led to the stairs on the side of the ship. He joined the soldiers there and was provided with a tent that had a cot in it. He could’ve found a quieter place to sleep in one of the buildings, but wanted to make sure he was at the edge of the ship’s city, prepared for Jones if he made it that far. After eating a quick meal, he lay down and closed his eyes. Pelros fell asleep, fantasizing about how he’d kill Jones with everyone on the ship watching. No one would ever question his loyalty to the Anunnaki people again.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Steve and Shane stood on the catwalk surrounding a water tower, high above the street.
“Looks like they got a shit-ton of humans to drink the Kool-Aid,” Steve said. “I thought the slave gene was turned off.”
“I’m guessing they’re just brainwashed,” Shane replied, looking through the binoculars Steve handed him. Campfires surrounded the base of the ship, and he could see Anunnaki mingling with the human kids. He scanned up the side of the massive pyramid to the light shining down on top.
“They’ve got us outnumbered,” Steve said, sounding more tired than concerned. “Looks like a hundred to one.”
The moonlight illuminated the rest of their friends on the street below and the small army of kids who followed them. They were grossly outnumbered. Unfortunately, a mile or so behind them, the green wall of fire crept over the landscape, destroying everything in its path.
“We’ve got no choice but to fight,” Shane said. “It’s that or give up and die.”
“Hey,” Steve said, crossing his arms over his big chest. “You know me. I’d rather go down fighting, if I have to go.”
“It wants us to kill the Anunnaki,” Shane said. “We’ll keep our group tight and spea
r our way through those kids around the ship. We’ve got to limit human casualties and take out those bastards on top of the ship. Then maybe Greenie will let us be.”
“No complaints here,” Steve replied. “The Anunnaki killed my parents. I ain’t done getting even with them for that.”
Shane climbed down the ladder on the water tower, Steve following him. When they got to the ground, Shane could see the green wall up the street, a half a mile away. He quickly relayed his plan to his friends on the ground.
“I expect we’ll hit the kids surrounding the ship in about ten minutes,” he said. “Keep together as tight as you can and don’t let them separate us. Don’t fight them unless you have to. I want to try to get some of them to turn to our side, but at the same time, we need to push our way through and get on that ship.”
“Okay, got it,” Anfisa said nervously, looking up the street. “Can we go now?”
“Yes,” he replied. “Let’s do this.”
He tried to seem enthusiastic, but fell short. The reality of their dire situation sank in. They were about to charge into an army of thousands of teenagers, probably all armed, in hopes they could plow through them. No matter how hard they fought, the odds were against them making it to the slave ship. And even if they did, they’d be too exhausted to fight after they ran up the side of it to reach the Anunnaki.
“Ain’t no other way,” Tracy said, seeming to be thinking the same thing.
As with every conflict they’d been in, she was at his side. His friends and the Russians formed the blade along the leading edge of the less experienced soldiers behind them. They narrowed the group so it was ten people wide and approached a wall of rubble that must’ve been created by the Anunnaki to protect the recruit ship.
His army made little sound, the air charged with fearful anticipation. He looked up at the pile of rubble, expecting guards to be pointing guns at them, protecting the makeshift fortress. But no one was there.
“I don’t think they expected an attack from this street,” Tracy whispered.
