“Sure. They'll have to travel through the sewers, but once they get across the crodillians, the streets to the skyscraper are empty. If they move quickly, they can get up here with no problems.”
“Good. I'm going to send some more your way. I'll feel better with the units getting information from a few more scouts at your vantage point. That way, every unit can be updated. It’ll be a lot for you to handle on your own.”
“There are a lot of dead bodies here. This place, it's littered with torn apart and half eaten bodies. Warn them before they come. I don't think all of them will be able to take the sight of it. It’s sickening what these things did.”
“I'll make sure to warn them,” Moran promised. “Take care of yourself up there, you'll have some company soon. Just hang in there, kid.”
Ezio looked back over the edge of the building to the streets below. Crodillian activity had definitely picked up and now he knew why. They were afraid, or maybe they just wanted to slaughter more innocent races. If they were afraid, they weren't alone because he was too. One of these sides was going to lose the war and he was going to do everything in his power to make sure it was those monsters.
Zarah sat in the Command Room of the base. She, and every other rebel, had seen the Princess' message. It was inspiring and she wouldn't want to follow any other woman in to war. She didn't know her, but there was just something about her that made Zarah want to follow her. Maybe it was because she saw a little of herself in the Princess, but whatever it was, she was ready to follow her to freedom or death.
Ludwig and Yvette sat on either side of her, and they too had voiced their admiration for the Princess. Both knew what she’d done was brave and took a lot of courage. The fact that winning wasn't guaranteed and the Princess was going to risk her life with the rebels only showed she was a true leader who cared for her galaxy.
They were just waiting now for the go ahead and it would no doubt be coming soon. The entire base was ready to leave and start the rebellion. Training hadn’t been as long as what the military received, but they wanted their homes back and would do anything to achieve that goal. Ludwig, Yvette, and the other officers had told everyone to get to their spots as soon as the speech was over. Every race knew their position in the forest and those who were going to lure the crodillians from Thermopylae knew who they were. There were jobs within jobs now, and every race was ready to do their part attain victory.
Zarah's comlink rang and she picked it up. “Hello?”
“It's Dorjan,” a reply came. “We've got these bastards bugged, and you should hear all the commotion going on down here.”
“You actually did it?”
“Of course we did it! And we had a little fun while we were at it too, hope you don't mind.”
“I don't care what you do at this point. If you have them bugged, that's all I care about. The Princess just delivered a message to Orion,” she revealed with a wide smile on her face. “We're officially at war with these savages.”
“I'll send you the transmission signal for the bug,” he said. “There's a few more bugs, but the first one I send is the most important. It’s been the most active since I took out some of their Commanders.”
“Take out some more if you get the chance,” she grinned. “In the meantime, send me the transmission and lay low if you want. You'll know when the time has come for us to come out from the base.”
She hung up the comlink and waited for a message to come through. Sure enough, Dorjan had actually bugged the crodillians. He had ten bugs in all, but she would only use the first one. If it was the most important one, it was the one the rebels would be listening to in the heat of battle. She looked to the officers gathered around the table.
“They're bugged. We'll know every move they make before they even make it. There’s nothing these savages do that we won’t know about.”
Ludwig clapped his hands. “This rebellion is ours to win! There's no way they can beat us!”
“Why don't we wait to start fighting before you start predicting who wins this war,” Yvette said. “We don't even know how they're going to react to us yet and you're already positive we're going to win.”
“I've trained my whole life for war,” he responded, crossing his arms. “We have the upper hand. We may be outnumbered, but they can't do a thing without us knowing about it.”
Zarah smiled to herself. She knew she had the perfect officers in this room right now. They were all different characters, but every one of them had the right traits to lead these rebels. They'd be split up soon with their respective units and each had learned the strengths and weaknesses of the others which would be great help on the battlefield. She was ready for the rebellion to begin. The crodillians had killed her whole family and now was her time to pay them back for it. Her old life would never come back, but she'd do all she could to get as close to it as possible.
Kanti and Anlon stood, facing Pyrrhus in front of the Capitol building. Instead of taking them back to the house after the speech, he’d brought them to speak with the Council. Kanti wasn't looking forward to it, but she was their leader, she had no reason to be afraid.
The followed Pyrrhus through the building and into the Debate Room where only the Council was present. They were sitting on the stage and looked towards Kanti and Anlon as they entered. Pyrrhus stayed outside as they walked up to the stage, hand in hand.
“You will not fight alongside the rebels,” Alura said in a harsh tone. “We cannot allow that to happen. You know that, don't you?”
“I will fight alongside my rebels,” Kanti shot back. “I’ll lead them to victory, or we can all die together. Abandoning them isn’t an option.”
“Who will lead them if they win and you are dead?” Reginold asked. “Have you not thought of this outcome?”
“I have, but I still stand firmly on my decision. I’ll fight with the rebels and if they need a new leader after, they can choose one.”
“Kanti, please think clearly,” Aida urged. “You’re thinking rashly. I understand you want to fight with them, but the crodillians will have its top priority to see you dead. Those beasts will try their hardest to kill the rebels’ leader and that’s you.”
“They will come after you, Princess,” Saidi agreed. “And if Kirill is working with them, we’ll already have our hands full trying to keep his assassins from getting to you on this planet.”
“She needs to fight with them,” Anlon intervened. “Adira would want her to. Orion is on the verge of collapse, why hold anything back?”
“You!” Alura pointed, standing from her seat. “Can be quiet! We’re talking to the Princess, not you. You’ve already put her in enough danger.”
“He saved me! I left Nesoi on my own. He and none of the others had anything to do with that. If it hadn't of been for him, I’d be in the possession of the crodillians right now and this rebellion wouldn't be happening.”
“Let the girl fight,” Hildereth said. “It’ll encourage the rebels to fight even harder. They won't want to see their Princess die.”
“I believe Hildereth is right,” Bertrade nodded. “She’s already told them she’ll be fighting with them, we can't pull her out now. If we do, it will look bad. They’ll believe the rebellion is hopeless if they don't see her by their sides.”
“Oh, you can't be siding with them now too,” Alura threw her hands up. “She's the Princess, she can't fight in a war!”
“I am the Princess and I will fight in a war. A war to free my races from the suppression and slaughter of monsters. A war that will bring back peace to our homes. A war that we will win.”
“Then go,” Aldrick motioned. “Hildereth, Bertrade, and I are on your side. I'm sure I can convince the others to side with you too.”
Reginold nodded. “You’ve convinced me, just don't die. Orion will need a leader like you when this war is over. You’re strong and stubborn, that’s what they need when this comes to an end.”
Kanti smiled to them and turned t
o leave the room. She and Anlon walked off the stage and met Pyrrhus at the door.
“That went better than I thought. I thought for sure they'd have your head for what you said,” Pyrrhus said.
“I'm their Princess, they can't stay mad at me. I’ve rallied every rebel in Orion, how could they possibly stay mad?”
“I don't know,” Pyrrhus shook his head. “But you sure surprised me with that speech. I wasn't expecting anything like that.”
Kanti blushed. “I was speaking from my heart. This is my mother's galaxy, and soon it will be mine. I need to take care of it and that means telling the truth. Warning the rebels of what's lying ahead, but also giving them hope so that they may make it through.”
“You’re wise for you age,” Pyrrhus opened the door. “Go get some rest before the rebellion starts. I'll bring you back here once we know the crodillians have moved.”
Kanti and Anlon walked down the steps and left the building behind them. The streets were empty, but they could still hear cheering a couple blocks away. Fighters were still streaming back and forth across the sky, adding to all of the celebration that would end soon. Both of them knew the reality of things after traveling in Orion together. The terror of war and the fear of not seeing loved ones again would soon be in the back of the mind of every rebel.
Chapter 32
Kirill stormed into the Reception Room that Merikh never seemed to leave. The few remaining screens that hadn't been shattered to pieces were displaying the Princess' speech continuously with the crodillian hunched over, fists clenched and growling through his snout. If Merikh had listened to him, none of this would be happening and he would be ruling without resistance. Unfortunately, it didn’t seem like listening was something this beast was good at.
Merikh turned to him with fury in his red eyes as he let out a roar. The black deformed crodillian that had brought him back from Erebos appeared from around a corner. Maolmordha walked over, glaring at Kirill with his dark orange eyes and grabbed him with his oversized hand.
“Let go of him, Maolmordha,” Merikh said through his gritted teeth. “We'll let him try to save his life.”
“Save my life?” Kirill asked. “I’ve done nothing but help you!”
“You said you could prevent this!” Merikh pointed to the screens with his black nails. “You said you could stop any rebellions before they happened, yet it seems to me, you’ve done nothing. From what your daughter says, this has taken time to put together, yet you’re probably going to claim you knew nothing of it.”
“I didn't know anything about it!” Kirill defended himself. “Do you think I’d have come to you if I’d been hiding this from you? I want the same thing you want!”
“Then why is this happening?” Merikh shouted, slamming his fist on another screen and breaking it. “Why are they rebelling after you promised me you would wipe out any rebellions?”
“Because of what you did to Adira. You sparked something in them after striking her for all to see. That woman was their leader and you publicly harmed her.”
“And now I’ll strike them with full force! I’ll kill every last rebel in Orion. None will survive my wrath. They’ve awoken a monster and now they’re going to pay the price.”
“You can't kill the humans. Let them live,” Kirill told him.
“Are they rebelling against me?” Merikh asked rhetorically.
“It was a part of our agreement that we not kill any humans. It doesn't matter if they rebel or not. Just because a few do, doesn’t mean all should suffer the same fate.”
“I remember no such agreement,” he balled his fingers. “You never mentioned anything about saving your own. You said you wanted to see Orion burn, like me. You said we both shared the same vision.”
“You can't kill the humans!” Kirill insisted, face reddening. “It’s the only thing that I'm asking for. If you kill them, there will be none of my own left. I’ll be the last of my kind in this galaxy!”
“Your own kind?” He chuckled from deep within his stomach. “Do you think I care about saving your own? You offered a service to me and you haven't delivered on your end of our agreement. And now, your humans will die for it. Your kind will pay the ultimate price for your negligence.”
“Merikh, I’m begging you. Don’t kill the humans. You can kill every other race, but let the humans live. They’ll understand their mistakes once this is all over.”
“You’re in no position to ask anything of me. You’re useless like Jahdiel. You’re lucky I don't kill you now, pathetic human.”
Kirill clenched his fists. “I gave up everything to side with you! It's not my fault you started a rebellion with your foolish actions! This is all on you.”
Merikh and Maolmordha chuckled. “You had better choose which side you’re on Kirill. Are you on the rebels’ side, or are on our side?”
“I’ve always been on your side, let me prove it!”
“He wants to prove his loyalty to us,” Merikh looked to Maolmordha with a grin. “Let's hear what he finally has to offer us.”
“I’ll kill Kanti,” Kirill fumed. “I’ll kill her and you’ll let the humans live once it’s done.”
“Ahh. You’d kill your own daughter so that other humans may live?” He stroked his chin. “Fine. But you’d better act quickly, because we’re still going to war with them. Until Kanti is dead, humans will continue to die, so that should be encouragement for you to act quickly.”
“I’ll kill her,” Kirill nodded. “She won't be a problem much longer. When she dies, the rebellion will fall apart. Everything centers around her and her mother.”
“I have yet to personally see you hold your end of a deal, but I'm sure you’ll find a way to get this done. Who knows, maybe I’ll even get to see those assassins of yours in action.”
“You will. You’ll see them very soon.”
“In the meantime,” Merikh sat back down. “The first human will die soon for all to see.”
“The Queen?” Kirill asked, already positive of the answer.
“Yes, I’ll kill the Queen. I’ll show these rebels what happens to those who rebel against me. I hope you don't mind Kirill, but then again, until you hold up your end, I don't care if you mind. This is my war to fight, you can sit back and watch.”
“You’ll only brighten the flame in their rebellion,” Kirill warned. “They’ll have even more reason to fight you, even more reason to kill you.”
“They’re already going to fight me. Their numbers are no match against my crodillians' strength. They think they stand a chance, but they’ll all die, including your humans if you don't leave now to kill your daughter. Move quickly Kirill, once my soldiers taste blood, they are hard to stop.”
Kirill turned to leave but was grabbed by Maolmordha. He yanked him back towards Merikh with his cracked arms and twisted him around.
“Just one more thing, if I kill the Princess first, you didn't hold up your end of the deal,” the crodillian leader grinned, revealing his teeth.
Kirill left the room and hid the fury raging inside of him. Merikh had thrown him out, rendered him useless, but hadn't witnessed his full strength yet. The savage didn't believe his men could actually do what he claimed, but soon he would see. Abdul had been right and it’d been stupid of him to wait, but the result would be the same. Merikh would die, he couldn't live any longer. If Merikh was going to kill humans, then he'd just have to die.
Jahdiel watched the screen in front of her, smiling at the Queen's daughter. The Princess had guts, but that didn't mean she'd survive. She’d worked with the crodillians long enough to witness their brute strength, something which the rebels had yet to see. Hearing about it was one thing, but actually facing it was another thing entirely.
Getting the rebels to accept her help would be near impossible, but she’d have to gamble and hope she lived to see another day. Merikh had still put her in charge of taking Ares which meant she was in control of all the ships. It was unlikely he'd let one lone fleet go
to Ares after that speech, but she was in total control of her Colchian. If she had to, she’d fire on the others when the time came, though it’d mean sure death, but it also meant the death of the entire crew. It’d give the rebels some help, and if she could escape, maybe allow her to join them and share information.
She wished she could do something else, but unless she was the only Colchian attacking Ares, there was nothing else she could do. She let out a deep breath and stared at the screen. Things had quickly fallen apart, but she was glad they had. It disgusted her to have ever worked with these monsters and was now willing to do anything to get away from them. It was now up to her to ensure they failed, even if it meant she died before seeing the resistance take down the crodillians.
Leilah and Donnchadh walked to the Capitol building. They knew that's where Pyrrhus was and Leilah had just seen something crucial to the rebellion. None of the others had seen it, and none of them had wanted to come along. Since going to the house, the entire tribe had secluded themselves in their own room, not speaking to anyone, even Leilah.
They walked up the steps to the building and let themselves inside just in time to see Pyrrhus coming down the stairs. When he saw Leilah, he rushed towards them.
“What is it Leilah?” He asked. “What’s happening?”
“The crodillians. They're readying for attack.”
“We know that. After the speech Kanti gave, we knew they’d be departing. It was a declaration of war and we expected them to act no slower.”
“Things are a little different than you’re expecting. My visions have changed since the first one, and things are looking a little better, but there’s also new danger. Something I didn’t feel before.”
“Let's talk this over with the Council,” Pyrrhus started walking down the hall.
“No,” Leilah stopped him. “They can't know some of the things I'm going to say, otherwise they may try to change tactics which will once again change my visions. They’re a cautious bunch, and right now we don’t need them interfering with what must be done.”
Rise of the Resistance (War for Orion Trilogy Book Two) Page 31