by Julie Kagawa
Her cool gaze shifted to the soldiers, to Garret, Tristan and Peter Matthews, and hardened with darkest hate. “St. George. It has been many, many decades since I have laid eyes on any of you. And now, you stand before me, in the company of dragons. Dragons you have allied with, even though the revered Code of St. George strictly forbids associating with demons. How quickly you humans seem to break your sacred oaths when you are in danger of extinction.”
“You bitch,” Peter Matthews growled, though his voice came out shaky. “We were right to hunt you. If we had managed to exterminate all you lizards back then, we wouldn’t be here now.”
The Elder Wyrm turned her cold gaze on the soldier. “As ever, you humans remain blatantly shortsighted and ignorant,” she remarked. “It was St. George that caused me to form Talon all those years ago. It was the human’s persecution of dragons that caused us to band together for survival. Because you could not see beyond your own hate and fear. Because you were convinced dragons were monsters, and thus needed to be exterminated.” She pointed a manicured nail at the defiant solder. “You are responsible for Talon, you and the rest of your kind who would hate us because we are not human. And you are accountable for what will happen to the rest of humanity. The death of every human, every soul who opposes Talon—be it man, woman or child—is on the head of the Order of St. George.”
Peter Matthews didn’t answer, but from the corner of my eye, I saw Tristan stagger, as if the Elder Wyrm’s words hit him hard. “You can’t do that,” he protested. “You can’t declare war on the entire human race.”
“Why not? St. George certainly had no compulsions against declaring war on us. What made you think we would not retaliate?” She smiled again, her eyes glittering green in the shadows. “You are weak, St. George,” she stated. “The entire human race is weak, violent, hypocritical and prone to self-destruction. Through the long ages I have been alive, I have seen it time and time again—the war and devastation humans bring, even to their own. Those who are different, who see life in ways other than yours, you declare ‘evil,’ and use that as an excuse to persecute and destroy. It has been this way since the beginning. And it will not change without intervention. Well...”
The Elder Wyrm turned and gazed at the screens again. “Intervention has come,” she stated. “We will bring a new age to humanity, one where they will live in peace with dragons, because we will force them to. That is the only action humans understand, and if we must slaughter half the human race to make them see reason, so be it. But first, we must destroy the traitors within our own race to proceed. Dante.”
At the base of the steps, Dante looked up, his face expressionless. “Ma’am.”
“Have you seen enough of the battle? Do we know where the sniper fire is coming from?”
Tristan jerked as Dante nodded once. “Yes. I’ve determined the trajectory—it’s coming from the eastern side of the mountain, about half a mile away.”
“Then launch the second phase.” Her cold gaze found mine. “As long as they are here, I want them to see their rebellion die. I want my daughter to understand why she should never have opposed us.”
I locked eyes with my brother, pleading. He met my stare, his expression as remote as ever, then reached into his suit jacket and pulled out a phone. “Lilith,” he said, holding my gaze as he spoke into the device, “the sniper fire is coming from the east. Remove it, kill the Eastern dragons and destroy the rest of the attackers. Leave no one alive.”
Riley
Something was about to happen, I could feel it.
The fight was going...okay. With the arrival of Jade and the two Eastern dragons, it had definitely shifted to not completely hopeless. But there were a lot of vessels, and even their smaller forms could overwhelm a larger dragon if they ganged up on it. I didn’t know how many dragons and soldiers were down, but it seemed like half our forces had been depleted, though the number of clones was finally dwindling, as well. I didn’t want to think about the hatchlings I’d lost until the battle was over, but I hoped at least some in my underground would survive this.
A shout below me drew my attention to the ground. Two vessels had a soldier of St. George by the legs and were dragging him across the stones on his stomach, with the soldier desperately trying to bring his gun around to shoot. I dove toward them and dropped onto a vessel’s back with all my weight behind me, crushing it to the earth. At the same time, the soldier finally managed to flip over, raise his M4 and shoot the second clone in the head and neck.
Panting, the soldier scrambled to his feet, nodding at me. “Thanks, lizard,” he barked out, and limped for cover once more, dodging a gout of flame from a vessel that swooped by. I had just tensed to leap into the air again when a shudder went through me, starting from the ground and shivering all the way up my spine. My stomach dropped, and for a split second, everything froze, the sounds of battle muted for a single heartbeat.
With a chilling, earsplitting groan that seemed to echo over the battlefield, the front doors of the laboratory creaked open again. Whispering a curse, I darted behind a vehicle and peered beneath the undercarriage, watching the iron barriers push outward. Of course Talon would have another surprise planned for us. What kind of monstrosities would pour forth this time?
The ground under my feet trembled, and three massive shapes prowled out of the shadows to step into the light. My heart nearly stopped. I huddled close to the ground, curling my tail around myself, as I fought back the despair and sudden terror.
Three Adult vessels. The same metallic gray of their smaller counterparts, but fifty times bigger. Their chests and forepaws were huge, their necks thick with muscle, and jagged, bony spines bristled from their shoulders and down their backs. They stalked forward, blank silver eyes blinking in the light, gazing emptily at the chaos surrounding them.
One of the Eastern dragons, the smaller red female, soared overhead, and the first Adult vessel reacted instantly. Shockingly fast, it leaped into the air, powerful wings unfurling, to slam into the other dragon. Clamping thick jaws around the slender body, it dragged the Eastern dragon out of the air and used its larger bulk to pin it to the ground. The Eastern dragon shrieked, thrashing and writhing in its grip, coiling her long body around the monster like a python, but the vessel did not relent.
With twin howls, the remaining Adult vessels launched themselves into the fight, unfurling huge leathery wings and taking to the air. Hatchlings and dragonells fled as the two behemoths began their pursuit, snapping and clawing at any dragon that came within reach. Thankfully, the hatchlings were small and quick, and the vessels’ enormous bulk weighed them down. But there was no way any of my dragons were going to bring down those monsters.
With a roar and a streak of green, Jade flew toward one of the vessels like an arrow, smashing into the huge body with a crunch that sounded like a pair of semis colliding. The Adult vessel screamed and tumbled down in a flurry of wings and tails, taking the Eastern dragon with it. The rumble as they struck the earth vibrated the ground and made my teeth chatter.
Okay, St. George, I thought, and leaped into the air once more, praying that my hatchlings would be smart enough to get the hell out of the way. If I couldn’t take those monsters down, at least I would be a distraction for the rest of them. If you ever needed a reason to use that damned rifle, here it is. You won’t ever hear me say this again, but shoot those things already!
But seconds ticked by, measured by the screams of dying dragons and the roars of those still living, and the shots never came.
Ember
I watched the horror unfold on-screen, watched one Adult vessel pull a red Eastern dragon out of the air and tear it apart with brutal efficiency, while the other two set upon Riley’s dwindling forces. We had failed. They were all going to die, but worse than that, their sacrifice would be in vain, because we were unable to uphold our end of the bargain.
“Your friend
s are lost,” the Elder Wyrm stated, watching me from the top of the steps. “The alliance between dragons and St. George is finished. Everything you have done up until this point has been for nothing. We will rise, and humans will fall before us, as it should have been from the beginning.”
“No,” I whispered. “Please stop this. There’s been so much death and suffering already. We can end the war. It doesn’t have to be this way.”
“You have lost,” the Elder Wyrm repeated, her voice a terrible drone in my head. Dante walked up the steps to stand behind her and did not look at me. “And now, I will take back what is mine, what I had created specifically for me. Vessel 176, bring me my daughter.”
One of the vessels stepped forward and grabbed my arm. Instantly, Garret turned, bringing both cuffed hands up, and smashed them into its nose, sending it reeling back. In that split second of shock, I made my decision.
I leaped through the ring of vessels, Shifting forms in midair. The cuffs burst open as I landed at the base of the steps in dragon form. We were all going to die, Talon had won this round, but at least I could take the Elder Wyrm down with me. Gathering myself, I tensed my muscles and sprang for the woman at the top of the steps, aiming for her slender white neck. Garret, Riley, I’m sorry. But maybe this will be enough to change things. See you on the other side.
“I think not,” the Elder Wyrm said quietly.
She took one step back as I came in, sweeping her arm up, blindingly fast. I barely had a chance to register that she’d moved before she backhanded me in the temple, right below my horns, and my head felt like it imploded. My vision fractured into shards of pain, and I was hurled away, hitting the floor with a jolt and rolling to a painful stop.
My head throbbed, feeling like it would split open at the slightest movement, and spots of darkness floated before my eyes. Dazed, I looked up to see the Elder Wyrm walking toward me, a faint smile on her lips. Behind her, the vessels had forced everyone to their knees, the muzzles of their rifles shoved into the base of their skulls.
“Foolish hatchling.” The Elder Wyrm loomed over me, ancient and unamused. Her eyes glowed green, and her presence pushed down on me like a boulder, crushing the air from my lungs. I couldn’t move as the oldest dragon in the world turned the full power of her gaze on me. “Did you think I would be weak as a human? That this pitiful body would be easy to destroy?” She raised an elegant, manicured hand, the nails as red as blood. “I have but a fraction of my true strength in this form, but that is still enough to crush your skull with my fingers. There is no one strong enough to challenge me face-to-face.
“Now.” The Elder Wyrm took a step back, her eyes hard. “It is time to end this little game, once and for all. But don’t worry, daughter. Soon, all your memories of this day will be erased, along with everything else. In some ways, I would think it a blessing. Vessels,” she called as Garret’s bright, soulful gaze met mine across the floor. “Kill the—”
A shot rang out, echoing off the rafters. My heart stopped, and I stared frantically at the group surrounded by vessels, expecting one of them to topple forward.
The Elder Wyrm made a tiny choking sound above me.
Stunned, uncomprehending, I looked up. A bright red stain was oozing through the front of her white blouse and spreading over her chest. Gingerly, she touched the crimson mark, then stared at the blood on her fingers, her expression one of shock.
Slowly, she turned...to reveal Dante standing behind her, the muzzle of a smoking pistol aimed at her chest.
“Dante,” the Elder Wyrm breathed as I gaped at my sibling, unable to move. “You...?”
“I’m sorry.” Dante’s voice was conflicted, though his expression was resolved, his mouth set in a grim line. His eyes glittered in the shadows as he stared down the Elder Wyrm. “I would have done anything for Talon,” he said as the Elder Wyrm took a staggering step forward. “I would have sacrificed everything to see our race thrive. I’ve played the villain, slaughtered innocents, supervised the creation of atrocities and sent those abominations into battle, all for the good of our kind.” For just a moment, his gaze flicked to me, and a shadow of anguish crossed his face. “But there’s one line I will not cross, and one piece of my life I will not sacrifice. I’m sorry it’s come to this, that it’s taken me this long to see what you really wanted.”
“Very clever, Dante.” The Elder Wyrm, amazingly still on her feet, put a hand to her chest. “I suppose I cannot be too surprised. You are...of my blood, after all. But you’re wrong if you think...I would hand Talon over to you.”
Dante’s gaze hardened. “I’m afraid you’ll have no choice,” he said, and raised his head. “Vessels,” he called, without taking his eyes from the Elder Wyrm. “To me. Release the prisoners and stand down—”
The Elder Wyrm moved. One moment she was standing in front of me, her blood dripping in slow puddles to the floor. The next, she had lunged forward impossibly fast, toward the boy with the gun a few yards away. At the last instant, Dante saw the danger and fired several shots at the approaching Wyrm. A fine spray of blood erupted from the Elder Wyrm’s back, misting into the air, as she grabbed Dante’s shoulder, wrenched him close and drove her clawed hand into his chest, sinking it past her wrist.
Time stilled around me. I watched, frozen in place, my brain refusing to accept what had just happened. Dante’s mouth gaped silently and a thin stream of red ran down his chin. The Elder Wyrm yanked her arm free, her hand covered in red halfway up her forearm, and Dante staggered, still looking stunned. He swayed on his feet, the pistol clattering sharply to the floor, and the world unfroze.
I leaped upright with a screaming roar and lunged at the Elder Wyrm, whose hateful green eyes snapped in my direction. Grabbing Dante by the collar, she yanked him around and shoved him at me. Dante staggered and fell forward, and I instinctively Shifted to human form, catching him before he could hit the floor.
Gently lowering him to his back, I looked up to see the Elder Wyrm vanish through a door in the far wall, leaving a spattered red trail behind her. As she passed through the frame, a metal barrier dropped down, cutting off pursuit.
Numb, I looked down at my brother. He lay there gasping, the front of his suit jacket a mess of blood. One hand was pressed to his middle, and blood pooled between his fingers, staining his shirt and spreading rapidly from his chest.
“Dante,” I whispered as my eyes started to burn. “You idiot. You always have to try to save me.” I couldn’t look at the gaping wound in his chest, fixing my gaze on his face, on his eyes as they sought mine. “Why?” I choked out. “Why now? What made you change your mind?”
“Didn’t...you hear me?” Dante looked up with a wry smile, though his face was tight with pain. “I said...there were some things I wouldn’t sacrifice, even to the Elder Wyrm. That some things are sacred. You...are one of them. The only sacrifice I couldn’t make.” His eyes closed, and my heart gave a violent lurch, but he just sighed and continued in a voice of dark regret. “I never changed my mind,” he whispered. “I just... I wanted to be free. I thought...if I reached the top, I would have made it, that power equaled freedom. But I was wrong. The Elder Wyrm...had no intention of ever stepping down.” He opened his eyes, and they were hard, glassy with pain, anger and revulsion. “Do you know how much worse it would’ve been, had she been ruling Talon from your body? Reminding me...that I had a sister, once, and I had failed her? I wouldn’t be able to live with myself.”
A shudder went through him. Blood bubbled from his lips as he coughed, and I gripped his hand. “Dante, don’t try to talk. We’ll get you out of here—”
“There’s not...much time left.” Dante’s words were forced, as if he was rushing to get them out. One bloodstained hand reached into his jacket, withdrawing a plastic key card. “Take this,” he said, dropping it into my palm. “That will get you through every...door in the laboratory. The hall on the left...will take you
to the stasis chamber. Destroy it, and the clones, before she can declare war on humanity.” Something exploded on the screen behind me, lighting the room for a split second, and Dante winced. “Go, Ember. Before it’s too late.”
“I’m not leaving you here!”
“It’s all right.” His fingers weakly squeezed my palm as he settled back. His green eyes stared up at the ceiling, tired and, strangely, at peace. “I’m finally free,” he whispered, almost too soft to hear. “You were right, you know. About Talon, and the Elder Wyrm, and everything. But I’m glad... I got to see you again. That I could protect you one last time.” He chuckled, barely a breath in the stillness of the room. “You were always like that,” he murmured. “Always the impatient sister that needed saving. I don’t know how...you made it this far...without me...”
“Dante.”
No answer. My twin stared up at the ceiling, his expression vacant and unmoving. I shook my head, unwilling to believe, and squeezed his hand.
“Dante.” I reached out and shook him, watching his head flop limply, eyes staring straight ahead. “Dammit, say something! Don’t you dare fucking die, not now, not with everything we went through to get here. Answer me! Dante!”
“Ember!”
Garret knelt beside me, stilling my arm, his gaze solemn as he pulled me back. “He’s gone.”
No. I slumped, a thousand emotions raging inside, making me want to scream, to Shift and rip something to pieces. Tears blurred my vision and crawled down my face, and I could barely speak through the sudden fury. “Dammit, Dante,” I choked out, gazing down at the still form of my brother, lying motionless on the tile. Gone. He was really gone. I’d never see him again. “Why didn’t you believe us earlier?” I whispered. “Why didn’t you just listen? We could have saved you.”