Virtue of War

by L O Addison

  Lio nodded. “They don’t want to damage the Virtues.”

  “I thought they couldn’t be destroyed by normal weapons?”

  “They can’t. But they can be deactivated.”

  Kaylin nodded. That was at least one thing they had going for them. The Ascendancy wasn’t going to charge in with guns blazing if they were worried about harming the Virtues.

  The Ascendancy agents gathered around the opposite side of the transport craft Matteo and Beck were hiding behind. They exchanged a few curt words in their language and then split up, the guards creeping around the sides of the craft with their pistols raised and ready for action. Their plan was obvious enough: keep Beck and Matteo pinned down behind the craft and flank them.

  An idea struck Kaylin. The Ascendancy might have been cautious about damaging the Virtues, but Kaylin didn’t give a shit. She pulled up the transport craft’s defense system, activating the side cannon. The controls for the weapon appeared on the screen in front of the passenger seat, and she pointed at Lio.

  “You ever used any type of artillery?” she asked.

  He shook his head, his eyes widening with panic.

  Kaylin patted him on the back. “Well, there’s a first time for everything.” She activated her comm unit and said, “Beck, Matteo, move away from that transport.”

  “We’re using it for cover,” Beck hissed.

  “Well, Lio’s about to use it for target practice, so move,” Kaylin said. “You’ve got about ten seconds before the Ascendancy flanks you.”

  Beck cursed and said, “We’re moving.”

  “Hang in there,” Kaylin said.

  As she spoke, she slid her pistol out of its holster and popped up the auto-pilot controls on the passenger screen of the transport craft. She quickly entered the coordinates for the Resistance base at Nice and then turned to Lio.

  “Stay in here,” she commanded. She pointed to the button that would engage the auto-pilot. “I should be back, but if I’m not, press this to take off. It’ll take the craft straight back to the Resistance base.”

  Lio nodded grimly. “Good luck.”

  “You, too,” Kaylin said. She took a deep breath and nodded to the cannon controls in front of Lio. “Now open fire.”

  Kaylin didn’t give herself time to second-guess herself before she hit the button for the door, sliding it open. She leaped down to the tarmac, and pressed close to the side of the ship as the door closed behind her.

  A high-pitched hum vibrated through the air as the cannon powered on. Kaylin braced herself, and the Ascendancy agents whirled toward their transport craft. The cannon opened fire, rocking the tarmac with a volley of explosive rounds. A wave of heat seared Kaylin’s skin, and she clapped her hands over her ears to block out the deafening boom.

  She squinted against the flaring light of the explosive rounds, holding her breath as she watched them land. One struck right at the feet of Alyona, sending her flying across the tarmac. The explosion would have killed any human, but the shield she wore seemed to somehow protect her from the blow, and she started clawing her way to her feet the moment she landed.

  The other rounds missed Zakhar but struck the transport craft, blowing chunks out of its right wing. The flaming bits of metal careened off the edge of the tarmac, tumbling below and hitting the ground with a crash. Zakhar and the two guards were forced to leap back and retreat toward their craft, racing toward the landing ramp.

  “Keep it up,” Kaylin yelled into her comm unit, although she had no idea if Lio could hear her over the cacophony of cannon fire.

  None of the Ascendancy agents seemed to have noticed that she’d slipped out of the transport craft. She was in their blind spot, with the passenger side of the craft hiding her from view.

  Through the smoke of the wrecked transport craft, Kaylin caught sight of motion. Beck raced out from the cover of the smoke, heading straight toward her. Lio stopped firing the side cannon—any other shots toward the wrecked transport craft risked hitting Beck. The side cannon tried to swivel toward the Ascendancy’s ship, but it was too far to the right for the cannon to reach.

  Kaylin held her breath, silently urging Beck on. With no more cannon fire to distract them, the Ascendancy continued firing toward Beck, although the thick smoke clinging to the tarmac made aiming near impossible.

  The side cannon boomed again, and a cloud of dust rained down on the tarmac. Kaylin glanced over and saw that Lio had the cannon aimed toward the ceiling. No, not the ceiling—one of the giant metal panels that formed the retractable portion of the hangar ceiling. In its retracted position, its hinges were clearly visible from below, making it vulnerable.

  Kaylin smiled grimly. “Good boy, Lio,” she said under her breath. The shields might have protected the Ascendancy ship from gunfire, but if a giant metal panel landed on the small ship, it would probably be enough to cripple it. And without the Ascendancy ship chasing after them, they had a far better chance of escaping.

  She turned her attention back to Beck. He ducked and weaved through the fading smoke, doing his best to avoid the shots fired by the Ascendancy. He still had the Virtue of War tucked tightly under his arm, and his eyes were locked right on her as he hurdled over a fallen Wardens guard.

  One of the Ascendancy’s stun shots hit him in the leg. Beck cried out in pain, and as his foot struck the ground, his entire leg crumpled under him.

  “Beck!” Kaylin yelled.

  He glanced toward her, and she held her hands up in a catcher’s stance. Beck hesitated, glancing toward the Ascendancy huddled around their ship. Now that he was on the ground, they’d stopped firing, but both of the guards were approaching him with raised rifles. Beck clutched tighter to the Virtue, clearly hesitant to redirect the Ascendancy’s attention toward her.

  “God damn it, Beck, throw it!” Kaylin screamed.

  Her sharp words seemed to jar some common sense into him. He pushed himself into a sitting position and hefted the Virtue into his hand, throwing it toward her. His frantic aim was hardly accurate, and Kaylin had to leap to her left to catch it.

  The Virtue was far heavier than it looked, and its sharp corners dug painfully into her palm. Kaylin bit back a cry of pain and whirled back toward their transport craft. The Ascendancy immediately opened fire at her, but she was quicker than them, leaping toward the transport.

  Lio opened the door for her, and she leaped inside, hauling herself into the driver seat. Lio swiveled toward her, and she thrust the Virtue of War into his hands. Then she pointed at the Fragment hanging from his neck. “Cloak it. And keep working on bringing that panel down. We’re leaving in just a moment.”

  She didn’t wait for his reply before diving back through the door and onto the tarmac. She reached into her bag as she landed, pulling out two electric grenades. She popped the pin off both of them and hurled them toward the Ascendancy agents. They exploded in a buzzing shower of sparks, obscuring the agents’ views and forcing them to stumble back a few steps.

  The cannon fire started up again, and the metal panel above the Ascendancy ship creaked as it was barraged. Dust and debris rained down on the tarmac, but Kaylin squinted through it, trying to spot Matteo.

  He burst out from behind the wrecked transport ship, the Virtue of Healing still tightly grasped in his hand. Matteo pointed toward Kaylin, and she nodded. He hurled the Virtue toward her, and she caught it, bracing against its heavy weight.

  She whirled back toward the transport ship, Virtue in hand. “Get Beck!” she called over her shoulder to Matteo.

  The ground in front of her exploded. Kaylin stumbled back, warding off the flying debris with her free hand. Stinging pain cut into her skin, but she gritted her teeth and ignored it.

  She glanced over at the Ascendancy agents. They fired another shot at her, this one striking the ground just to her left. The concrete exploded as deadly blaster fire struck it.

  Apparently, they’d given up on stun rounds. They were getting desperate to stop her.

&n
bsp; The guards charged her, both sprinting toward her position. Kaylin’s hand inched toward her pistol, but she knew it’d do no good. Instead, she leaped behind the nearest cargo box. Just in time. The box slammed into her back as heavy blaster fire struck it. Heat washed over its sides, and Kaylin frantically examined her surroundings. She needed to get inside the transport, but they had her completely pinned.

  The shriek of shearing metal echoed through the hangar. Kaylin looked up and saw the roof panel finally break free from its ruined hinges, crashing down to the Ascendancy ship below. Sparks erupted as the ship’s shield fended off the damage, but the ship tipped to its side, pinned down by the massive metal panel.

  The Ascendancy agents erupted in frantic yelling, and Kaylin risked a glance around the edge of the box. The Ascendancy agents were all distracted, facing their ship. Beck was struggling toward the transport on his paralyzed leg, Matteo half supporting and half dragging him along.

  Kaylin leaped up, charging toward the transport with the Virtue of Healing tucked firmly under her arm. The Ascendancy guards recovered from their surprise and turned back toward her, racing to intercept her. Blaster fire exploded around her, and her heart pounded painfully in her chest. She put on a fresh burst of speed, tapping into a reserve of adrenaline she hadn’t realized she still had.

  But it wasn’t enough. She wasn’t going to make it.

  Lio leaped down to the tarmac. Kaylin screamed at him to stop, but it was far too late. He dove at the nearest guard, striking him in the side. The guard fell sideways, knocking into the other guard, who had been running at his side.

  It gave Matteo and Beck the perfect opening, and they reached the transport, hauling themselves inside. Kaylin pushed herself forward, desperate to cross the last few feet and join them.

  She knew she had a mission to complete—she had to get the Virtue of Healing on that transport. But it still took every ounce of Kaylin’s willpower not to drop the Virtue and help Lio. She watched out of the corner of her eye as the taller guard swung his weapon toward the ambassador. Kaylin’s stomach sank as she waited for him to pull the trigger. Instead, he lifted the rifle and slammed the butt of his weapon into Lio’s skull.

  The ambassador fell limply to the ground. Anger and terror roared through Kaylin’s veins as the guards turned toward her. She raced toward the door of the transport, but the guards were closer, and they intercepted her.

  The taller guard slammed into her side, knocking her feet out from under her. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she registered pain. But at the forefront was panic.

  She struck the ground and rolled to soften the blow. The Virtue of Healing flew out of her grip, landing right next to Lio’s unconscious body. Kaylin desperately reached for it, but the shorter guard snatched it away from her. A heavy boot stomped on her left shoulder, jarring her bones and pinning her to the ground.

  Kaylin stared up at the guard, panic washing over her. She’d failed. She was trapped, and the Virtue of Healing was now in the hands of the Ascendancy.

  Then something caught her eye—the Fragment hanging from the chain around Lio’s neck, hardly a foot away from her. This close to the Virtues, the Fragment pulsed with light and gave off a low hum. That was probably the only reason they hadn’t outright shot Lio. They wouldn’t want to ruin an artifact as powerful as the Fragment.

  The Fragment would let them cloak the location of the Virtue of Healing. And then that would be the end. The Ascendancy would have a Virtue that would make them practically indestructible, and no one would ever be able to track it down and destroy it.

  But she wasn’t about to let that happen.

  Kaylin kicked up, slamming her boot into the groin of the guard pinning her. His shield caught the blow, but the guard instinctively flinched back, giving Kaylin room to wiggle out from under his boot. In a single motion, she grabbed the Fragment, tore the chain off Lio’s neck, and hurled it off the side of the tarmac.

  It flew through the air, plummeting to the floor below.

  “Red!” Kaylin screamed. “Fetch!”

  The guard cursed as he stared over the side of the tarmac. Then he whirled toward her, the butt of his rifle raised high. Kaylin tried to leap to her feet, but he kicked her in the stomach, knocking the wind from her lungs.

  She froze as she struggled to suck in a breath. Her mind screamed at her to move, but her body was frozen with shock. She glanced up just in time to see the guard bringing his rifle crashing down toward her head.

  “Fetch it back to Beck,” she thought, channeling the thought toward Red. “Quickly.”

  Light exploded in her skull. Then blackness swallowed everything.

  40

  Beck

  Kaylin was down. Beck stared in horror down at her limp form on the tarmac, his mind spinning wildly as he sat in the driver’s seat of the transport.

  He needed to rescue her. He needed to get her back to the transport. He needed to kill the guard standing over her and rip his corpse to pieces.

  He moved to leap out of the transport, but his left leg wouldn’t move. He cursed and glanced down at it. It felt like it was on fire, but the effects of the stun shot didn’t seem to be fading, and it hung limply from his waist.

  Matteo shoved him roughly in the shoulder. “Let’s move,” he snapped.

  Beck shook his head. “We can’t leave Kaylin and Lio. And we only have one of the Virtues.”

  “And it’s the only one we’re going to be able to get,” Matteo said frantically. He gestured down at the Ascendancy guards, who had turned their attention back to the transport craft.

  Matteo was right. One of the guards held the Virtue of Healing in his hand. Beck wracked his brain, trying to think of some way he could save Kaylin, Lio, and the Virtue of Healing. But before he could even finish the thought, the other guard lifted his rifle toward the transport craft.

  Beck’s combat instincts kicked in, and he slammed a hand on the transport’s control panel, activating its exterior shield. And just in time. A blaster shot struck the windshield, making the shield spark and sizzle. Another shot immediately followed, then another.

  The shield wasn’t going to hold long.

  Matteo gripped Beck’s shoulder, his fingers digging painfully into his skin. “We can’t let them have two Virtues,” he said. “We need to leave.”

  Beck knew he was right. At least they had the Virtue of War. If they left now, they’d be able to keep one Virtue out of the Ascendancy’s hands.

  He couldn’t try to save Kaylin, not without letting the Virtue of War fall into the hands of the Ascendancy.

  Still, he couldn’t bring himself to activate the transport’s auto-pilot. Kaylin had already programmed in the location of the nearest Resistance base, and all Beck had to do was push a single button. But he was frozen, unable to bring himself to do it.

  Matteo cursed and reached over, slamming the button for him. The craft vibrated as the engines kicked into full gear, lifting the craft a couple feet straight off the ground.

  A streak of motion caught Beck’s eye. Something grey dove through the air toward the transport. For a single moment, Beck thought it was some sort of missile. But then Red landed in a clumsy heap right outside his door. The little dragon skidded to a halt, slamming into the side of the transport and yelping in pain as his wing struck the metal siding.

  “Get in here!” Beck commanded as he slid the door open.

  Red hurriedly folded his wings and leaped into the craft. A blaster hole appeared in the concrete where the dragon had landed just moments before, spraying debris up at Beck. Beck cursed and slammed the button to close the driver’s door, and it slid closed just as a barrage of blaster fire struck the outside of the craft.

  The transport craft jetted upward, slamming Beck back against his seat. He frantically craned his neck, trying to catch sight of Kaylin below. For a single second, he was able to see her through the rear window of the transport. She was still on the ground, right next to Lio’s unconscious f
orm. Her hand reached up to touch her wounded head, and Beck breathed a sigh of relief.

  She was still alive. For now.

  The transport picked up speed and turned south, cutting off his view of Kaylin. Beck stared down at the ruins of Paris beneath him, blinking hard against the afternoon sun. It was hard to believe he was actually still in France. The tunnels had felt so otherworldly, and the adrenaline spikes had warped time so much, he half expected to find another planet when he emerged.

  But it was still the exact same Earth he’d left behind. Broken, but not beaten. Not yet.

  He grabbed the Virtue of War from where it’d fallen onto the floor and brought it close, examining its surface. He’d thought it had been covered in rust, but now he realized the red color was actually a series of extremely small, intricate runes carved into the silvery metal. He ran his thumb over one of the sides. It was perfectly smooth, but it radiated an odd heat that made his skin prickle and his stomach drop.

  They'd done it. They'd accomplished the impossible and retrieved the Virtue of War.

  But he didn't feel the slightest bit of pride. Only sadness and sickness.

  He suddenly realized there was one more task he needed to do. Beck dialed Duval on his comm unit, and the commander immediately picked up.

  "Well I'll be damned," Duval said. "I never thought I'd hear from you again."

  "We have the Virtue of War," Beck said.

  A stunned silence met his words. Then Duval let out a small, shocked laugh. "You crazy bastard," he said. "You actually did it."

  "It's been contained," Beck said. "We're on our way back to the base. Call off the airstrike."

  "Gladly," Duval said. "I look forward to hearing your debriefing when you get back."

  "I'll see you shortly," Beck said, and then he hung up. He lapsed into silence, still too shocked to know what to say or think or do.

  “Do you think they’ll come after us?”

  Beck flinched at the sound of Matteo’s voice. In the close confines of the transport, it sounded far too loud.