The Aeternum Chronicles- The Complete Trilogy, page 92
part #1 of The Aeternum Chronicles Series
There was a flash of enmity in Austere’s eyes, but it quickly faded upon seeing the grim resolve in Ryland’s. His father gave a curt nod.
“Let’s go,” said Tao, flipping the switch to lower the spiral staircase.
They descended as quietly as possible down into the statue room, and Tao quickly peeked out into the hall. “Clear.”
“We want the sixth door on the left,” Austere whispered. “We can reach the lower levels from there.”
They filed out into the hall with Tao leading the way. Austere followed next, with Ryland behind him holding the shock-dart gun to his back. Tess and Seamus brought up the rear.
Ryland looked up at the sounds of heavy footsteps above.
After a few tense moments they reached the room Austere mentioned. They all slipped inside and quietly closed the door. Ryland recognized the guest room. To anyone else, it might have appeared as the master, given the elaborately carved four-poster bed, luxurious lounge seating area, and embroidered red velvet curtains.
Shouts came from down the hall.
“There’s a dumbwaiter against the right wall,” Austere whispered, pointing. “We can use it to get down to the kitchens in the basement.”
“Bar the door,” Tao said walking over to inspect where Austere had been pointing.
Ryland, Tess, and Seamus lifted the surprisingly heavy love seat and used it to block the door.
“Seamus,” Tao called. The mechanic walked over, leaving the two of them to stack more furniture.
“Will it hold?” Tao asked.
After a moment, he answered, “Aye. It should. Nearly everything in these old buildings was overbuilt.”
Ryland and Tess stacked more heavy furniture before the door, and nodded to each other once they could fit no more.
“You and Ryland will go first,” Tao said to Austere.
“Two of them?” Seamus asked. “I’m not sure—”
He cut off at a sharp look from Tao.
The dumbwaiter opening in the wall was not particularly tall, but it was wide. They’d fit if they were both in a sitting position. Whether or not it could handle their combined weight was another story.
“Let’s go,” Ryland said, gesturing with the shock-dart gun.
Austere climbed in awkwardly onto the small platform. Ryland joined him and it dropped suddenly about half an inch. He got into position, sitting facing his father with the weapon pointed toward him.
The doorknob across the room rattled as someone tried to open it.
“Locked,” a muffled voice said from outside the door.
“Do it,” said Ryland, and Seamus flipped the switch beside the opening.
They began descending into the dark shaft. It was beyond cramped, and Ryland briefly wondered what discharging a shockdart might do to them both in such a small space. The mechanical motor whirred as they continued downward. A loud thud echoed from above.
They’re trying to break down the door.
Ryland’s muscles tensed as the platform jerked to a halt, dropped a few inches, then continued its tenuous descent.
When it finally stopped for good, there was a faint square outline of light on the wall beside them. Ryland pushed at the center and the door swung open. He stepped out, and gestured for his father to do the same. Ryland then flipped the switch to send the dumbwaiter back up.
Ryland looked at his father, who still managed to appear condescending, despite the blood on his face, and the gun pointed at his chest. No doubt the old blowhard was bursting at the seams with admonishments for his wayward son. Fortunately, a loaded weapon was a fantastic deterrent for such things.
“You are aware that you’re being used?” Austere offered.
Perhaps not that great a deterrent.
“That may be,” said Ryland, remembering the damning announcement he’d made. “But at least they gave me a choice, which is more than the Ministry ever offered you.”
“Choice,” Austere scoffed. “What good is choice when all options are bad?”
“I guess you’ll never know,” Ryland countered.
The dumbwaiter clunked to a stop, and Ryland helped Tess out—making sure to keep the shock-dart gun pointed at his father. She flipped the switch, sending the dumbwaiter back up.
“Everything okay up there?” Ryland asked. “I heard pounding.”
“They found us,” she answered. “But the door is holding.”
A few moments later, the dumbwaiter arrived with Seamus inside. He stepped out, his eyebrows knitted together with worry.
Tess quickly flipped the switch back up, and asked, “What’s going on?”
“They gave up poundin’ on the door,” Seamus answered. “But on my way down, I felt…something.”
“Something?” Ryland asked.
“Aye…weightlessness, like someone was drawin’ me back up.”
Ryland swallowed. Breaker.
Everyone jumped as the dumbwaiter slammed back down with force. Tao followed a second later, landing roughly on the bent surface.
As he climbed out, Ryland noticed that one of his swords was missing, and the lights along his left thigh had gone dim.
“Go!” he shouted, snapping everyone out of their shock.
Austere led as they rushed around the long metallic kitchen tables, past industrial sized range stoves, and hanging pots and pans. They emerged from the kitchens into a dimly lit hallway. Austere turned right, and Ryland followed. Several steps later they reached a plain white door with a metal knob. Austere turned it and pulled the door open. Several feet in was a metal wall with a steel door at the center.
Austere pulled the handle and opened the thick door.
Frigid air wafted out, cooling the sweat on Ryland’s forehead. Inside was a small room with racks against the back and side walls, filled with cuts of frozen meat.
“A cold room?” Tao asked, looking more dangerous than Ryland had ever seen him. “Is this a trick?”
Austere simply glared at the assassin, and stepped inside. He exhaled a puff of white breath as he bent to lift a metal ring that had been flush with the floor. With the ring came a trap door, hinging upward on gas springs. Red lights flickered on below, revealing a set of narrow stairs leading down.
Pots and pans clanged loudly from down the hall, drawing everyone’s attention.
Seamus quickly shut the outer door, closing them in.
“You first,” said Tao, pointing to Austere. He then looked at Ryland and said, “He’s your prisoner.”
Ryland nodded and rushed after his father. The others followed, closing the doors behind.
The arched tunnel was constructed of smooth cement, and the red tinted lighting was modern, compared to the rest of the mansion. It was likely his father had it built sometime in the past few decades.
They rushed down the tunnel and arrived at another door with a round metal knob. Austere gripped it, turned, and pushed. The door swung open, revealing a darkened room. He reached in and hit a switch along the wall, and a set of hanging fluorescents blinked on overhead.
A row of vehicles stood before them, each resting on a track that led forward up a darkened tunnel. It was actually a pretty impressive sight. There was a hover-bike, a transport van, a standard ministry transport sedan, a cigar-shaped black pod, and a sleek racer vehicle unlike anything Ryland had ever seen. Not only was it beautiful, it simply looked fast.
They all turned at the faint sound of metal crumpling behind them. Seconds later, the tunnel behind was filled a chorus of throaty clicking noises.
“They’re coming!” Tess said urgently.
“I say we take that one,” Seamus suggested, pointing at the roadster.
Ryland was on the verge of agreeing when a surge of pain ripped through his head. He groaned, collapsing to the ground as everything went white.
No, he thought. Not now!
The pain receded just as quickly, and he opened his eyes.
Ryland sat before a long, plain metal table. He was surrounded by four glass walls and a ceiling. It was a familiar sight—the very same that currently held Gabrial Penumbra…the Patriarch.
Beyond the glass cube a solid door with a small square window opened. He watched with confusion from inside the prison as Ryland Walcott stepped through it.
Gabrial looked the boy over, judging him. Yes, he’ll do.
Ryland’s thoughts were no longer his own. As had happened before, the Patriarch’s mind once again became his own.
He reached out to the young man’s mind, and easily inserted himself into the unsuspecting boy’s consciousness.
Hello Ryland.
27
Regroup
Ryland slowly opened his eyes and saw buildings rushing by through the window. He was lying down. A delicate, light floral scent with a hint of vanilla filled his nostrils.
Gabrial! He sat up in a panic.
“It’s okay,” said the woman sitting beside him. “We’re safe.”
Ryland’s eyes widened. Maker she’s gorgeous.
His brain kicked in and he recognized her. “Tess.”
She looked at him, her brow drawn with worry.
Ryland’s ears turned bright pink as he realized that his head had been resting in her lap.
“Safe,” Seamus said, turning back from the front seat, “is a relative term.”
Tao was behind the wheel, quiet, as usual. The buildings zipping by became a solid blur as the vehicle accelerated to incredible speed. It was faster than anything Ryland had ever traveled in.
“Wait a minute,” said Ryland. “My father…is he…”
Tess shook her head. “When you collapsed, he took advantage of the distraction and jumped onto the hover-bike. He was gone before any of us could stop him.”
Ryland’s shoulders slumped. “I’m sorry,” he said. “I endangered us all.”
“If you hadn’t insisted we bring him along, we might not have made it out of there alive,” she said.
Ryland noticed Tao subtly glance back in the rear-view.
“Aye. It was the right choice, lad,” Seamus echoed her sentiments.
The vehicle decelerated rapidly. Tao cut the wheel, turning onto a side street.
“Where are we?” Ryland asked. He didn’t recognize this part of the city.
“Sector three. Back roads,” Tess answered. “The main ones are clogged with civilians walking toward the evac zones.”
“The Ministry,” said Ryland, “they’re going to prevent anyone from leaving, aren’t they?”
“Prevent?” Seamus asked. “Aye, if we’re lucky. If not…”
He didn’t have to say it for Ryland to know what the alternative was.
“Either way, they’re going to be caught in a warzone,” said Tess.
Ryland frowned. “We have to go back.”
“You giving the orders now?” Tao asked, breaking his silence.
“No…yes. I mean…it’s important! I need to speak with Hatch…in person.”
Tess shot an admonishing look at the back of Tao’s head. “That’s where we’re heading,” she said. “We need to regroup.”
Right, Ryland thought. Regroup.
He clenched his teeth, biting down onto his tongue, and the coppery taste of blood filled his mouth.
28
Scream Defiance
“Keep your lines straight!”
Fist commanders shouted orders as Anzien studied the two arcs of soldiers formed by the battalions under her command, tasked with protecting the six exit points, which weren’t much more than cavernous holes in the stony base of New Arcadia. But soon each of those tunnels would be filled with transports carrying thousands of civilians. The tunnel entrances were thirty feet up, and spaced well apart, forcing Anzien to spread her lines far thinner than she’d have liked. According to the original plan, the civilians would begin arriving after the army attacked. But given how things had changed, she was no longer certain what would happen.
Anzien clenched her fists. Graves was up to something. She gazed up toward the night sky. A sprinkling of stars stood out against the black. There were far fewer than she was used to seeing due to the ambient light of the colony. Even so, it was too dark to spot any of the Sahra’ windwalkers circling high above, waiting for her signal should she need them.
Anzien turned as a loud hissing came from the nearest tunnel. A broad, segmented surface clacked loudly as it began to unfurl out from the cavern mouth, forming a massive ramp. On either side was a tube, growing rigid as it was pumped full of air. Once fully unraveled, it formed a large ramp from the exit point down to the desert sand, easily thirty feet wide. Blue lights flared to life along the outside edges.
Anzien had known of the exit points, and that the civilians would arrive through them, but not how.
Not bad, she thought, looking the gray ramp up and down. Seconds later, a figure appeared at the top, waving frantically.
Anzien frowned. Something’s wrong.
“Hold formation!” she shouted. “You two,” she pointed to a nearby runner and defender. “With me.” She sprinted back toward the ramp, and they followed. The man at the top was still waving them on once their boots hit the ramp.
“Hurry!” he shouted.
His uniform was different from their own, though there was a Ko’jin fist printed on the right breast of his black body armor. Blood was smeared across his forehead, and his left arm hung limp at his side.
They reached the top of the ramp. “Status,” Anzien ordered.
“Quickly,” he said, turning to run. “This way.”
The tunnel went in about seventy feet, ending with the flat face of a giant metallic cylinder. The transports, she thought. There were double doors straight ahead, opened just enough for the soldier to slip through.
Anzien glanced back at the two soldiers in tow, then followed after him. They reached the doors, and she gave the command to pull them open.
Her jaw dropped, and her stomach turned at the scene within. Children cried inconsolably, and pained screams of the injured rang out within the steel walls of the transport. There was blood along the broad center aisle, where more than a few men and women lay. Some were motionless, while others writhed in pain. A mender, judging by the all-white uniform, was moving between them as quickly as possible, administering treatment where he could.
There was row upon row of seating, but more than half were empty. Many of those that were occupied held children, with no sign of their parents.
“Maker,” Anzien whispered.
The soldier who’d waved them over looked up from where he knelt. Beside him was a man lying motionless with his eyes open and glazed over.
“We have to get them off the transport,” he said urgently. “There were more coming when we left.”
Anzien looked at him closely for the first time. He had the look of a man who’d witnessed something horrific, and employed all of his mental fortitude to maintain control. It wasn’t clear how much longer he would last, but he held for now, which would have to be enough.
She turned to the runner standing behind her. “I want twenty soldiers, and as many menders as you can find up here, now!”
The runner tore her eyes away from the transport, and looked at her. For a moment, Anzien thought she might need to repeat the order, but the soldier promptly saluted and ran back down the tunnel.
Anzien rushed in to help the strained soldier carry a barely conscious man toward the exit. She looked at the name etched under the Ko’jin emblem on his breast. It read Coburn.
“Coburn,” she said firmly, “what happened up there?”
He looked past her for a moment, then focused. “The Protectorate,” he said. “There were just so many of them. They’re attacking the evac point. We got as many civilians inside as we could but…”
“Continue,” Anzien said.
“At first, it seemed like the wards were trying to maintain order, but the people were spooked. They desperately wanted into the evac point. I don’t know who struck first, but the wards began attacking the civilians,” he said. “It’s complete chaos.”
More soldiers arrived from outside as she and Coburn gently set the injured man down.
“Help these people!” Anzien ordered. “Get them out of the transport and taken care of.”
The soldiers hurried over to help, and Anzien walked out to the edge of the ramp. Two more exit point ramps had unfolded off to the north and south, the transports within containing civilians who no doubt suffered the same fate as this one.
She turned her gaze out over the army. Nine-thousand soldiers held in the dim light of the early evening. The words Graves had spoken earlier echoed in Anzien’s ears.
‘It is a General’s job to ensure that her army attacks with optimal advantage.’
It was in that moment that Anzien was confronted with the horrifying truth. Graves was using the civilian evacuation to draw the enemy’s attention before launching her offensive.
A chill ran through her, then her blood promptly began to boil. It took every last ounce of her restraint to keep from marching toward the Field General’s command tent.
Think, Anzien. How can you fix this?
A strong wind buffeted her, ruffling her uniform and causing her to stumble back. A great winged raptor swooped down and landed in the cavern before her. Mounted upon its back was Avi, and judging by her expression, she didn’t bring good news.
“Avi,” Anzien said. “Report.”
“An army of shadow-dogs approaches from the west,” she said.
“How many?”
Avi hesitated.
“Boil it Avi, how many?”
“The sands are stained black for miles,” she answered.
