“Rise—good—ser—I mean—my chil—You can stand up.”
Randolph rose to his feet. If he had noticed Connor’s fumble of words he didn’t let on. Instead he beamed with pride as he turned and shouted orders to his men.
“Open the gate!”
Connor walked with Morrigan on his right and Randolph on his left. The path from the palace gates to the enemy camp was a wide road made of hard packed earth. Greens and browns paralleled the road on either side as the jungle surrounded them.
Vercin, Julie and a man holding a pole with a large whit flag could be seen fifty yards down their path.
Connor walked with purpose. He made sure his shoulders were back and his chin was high. The thought that this could be a trap crossed his mind but he shoved it away in a second.
If this is a trap then so be it. Worrying won’t help. You know what to do. Morrigan and Randolph are with you. It may even be better if it is a trap. Then all of this can end here and now.
These ideas and thoughts were soon gone as the trio stopped a few yards short of Vercin and his companions. Connor could see who the third member of their party was now. Christof Ulfric. The same man who had acted as a lawyer, trying to prove Connor as an imposter during hearing in front of the Elite council that seemed so long ago. In a strange way Connor almost had to thank the man for making him take the set of ancient trials. It had banded the remaining families together. The same families that now made up the army inside the palace walls.
Vercin was wearing full armor with a thin steel crown on his brow. Julie practically mirrored Morrigan, wearing a similar black cloak.
“So here we are,” Vercin said, smiling. He placed a hand on the hilt of his sword.
It didn’t surprise Connor at all that the would-be king was the first to speak. In fact, he had expected it.
“Here we are. What did you want to talk about? Unless it has to do with your surrender or the release of Orion, I have nothing to say.”
Vercin’s eyes twinkled. His one blue and one brown eye that set him apart from everyone else practically laughed all by themselves.
“Oh, Connor, you are getting so much better as a leader. I’m almost proud of you. What is the saying?” Vercin looked at Julie. “Something about a little engine?”
“The little engine that could.” Julie nodded, refusing to take her eyes off Morrigan.
“Right. I have to say there have been so many wonderful analogies created since I have been away.”
Connor clenched his jaw. He knew Vercin was enjoying himself. The man had an ego the size of the palace itself. He was flaunting his calm demeanor in front of Connor now. A demeanor that said he was sure of victory and couldn’t care less about the bloodshed that was coming.
“I’ll take that as a no,” Connor said. “So, what is it that you want?”
“Ahhhh… always straight to business. Nice outfit, by the way. I have seen our ancestors wear it. I wore it once, before my eyes were opened and I realized that as Judges we were not meant to save the Elite world, we were meant to rule it. I’ve come here to give you one final chance to stand down. Join me or not, I don’t care anymore. Just stay out of the way. The human world was born to be ours. It is our fate as the top of the food chain to stand in a position of dominance and power. Anything less would be a true waste of what we are.”
“We’re here to protect them, not to rule. We have been given a gift to use to help people, not to enslave them.”
Vercin shook his head like he was sad to hear the news. His eyes flicked over to Randolph as though he had noticed the man for the first time.
“And you, Randolph Ulfric? You are going to follow a young Judge into impossible odds and die at his side when most of your family is with me?”
Randolph answered but he was looking at his cousin Christof when he spoke. “I was tricked into helping you escape. I was lied to by members of my own family. That’s not what family does. I have found a new family that doesn’t lie, doesn’t manipulate, and yes, I will die by their side.”
Christof met Randolph’s gaze with a sneer. Hate shot out like lasers from his eyes. “You are a bloody idiot and a fool, Randolph Ulfric. I will kill you myself for standing against our true king.”
Connor was shocked for a moment that a once timid lawyer could have grown so bold. The approving nod that passed from Vercin to Christof that followed explained it all.”
Randolph must have also caught the exchange, “You are a fool, Christof, and nothing more than a dog pleasing a master.”
Christof moved forward, a hand sliding to the long sword at his side. Vercin stopped him with an outstretched hand.
“Well, then I guess we do, in fact, have nothing to talk about,” Vercin said. “But before I go, Connor, before you go back and hide behind your joke of a wall, before I come and slaughter you all, I want you to realize how flawed your thought process really is.”
Connor didn’t want to hear Vercin talk. He was sick of listening to his voice. But what made him feel even sicker was that he wanted to know what Vercin had to say.
“You follow an ancient set of rules. You are a Judge. A Judge that comes when the Elite race and the world needs them. But what about all the little times the world needs you? All the small occasions when a Judge doesn’t rise and still hundreds, maybe thousands of people die. In a way, you’re no better than I am. You come when you feel you are called. You save some while others die.”
Connor watched as a wicked smile passed Vercin’s lips and he turned to walk away. Julie took a few steps backwards, following her king’s lead. “I’ll have my daughter back, Morrigan. When your body is lying cold on the field of battle, I’ll take her back and clear her mind of the poison you left.”
“We can let her make her own decision, Julie. While you were lying to her and turning into the monster you have become, she has grown up into a very capable young woman.”
Julie sneered and turned to follow Vercin and Christof.
Connor looked at Randolph and Morrigan as they also turned to go.
“Well, that went well,” Connor said. “Do you think they’ll attack soon?”
Trumpets rang out from the enemy camp. A rumble like a thousand feet marching filled the quiet air. Shouts from deep throats and roars from the insane members of Karnag peppered the air.
“I had to ask.”
Chapter 29
“Close the gates! Shields on the doors!” Randolph yelled over the chaos in the palace courtyard.
Connor and Morrigan ran up the long flight of steps leading to the palace walls. Lu, Miyanda, and Katie were already there. Connor looked out past the jungle foliage and saw Vercin’s monster of an army begin to move.
Just like chess. Think a move ahead of Vercin. No, think two, three moves ahead of him. But this isn’t a game… people are going to die today.
Connor stood directly in the middle of the palace wall. He could feel the stones underneath his feet shudder as Randolph and his family braced the gate for impact. He could hear Zheng shouting orders to his men.
Lu was on his left, glaring into the enemy as if he was killing them all in his mind there and then. He was in charge of repelling attackers off that side of the wall. His own family members, members of the Abelardus house, stood shoulder-to-shoulder hefting spears, arrows, and rocks.
Miyanda and her mother were on the wall to Connor’s right. Dark-skinned, violet-eyed warriors stood tall, unwavering with their female leaders.
Connor could feel his heart quicken. The enemy was forming ranks now and it would be only minutes before they came.
“I never thought I’d say this, but I would actually prefer sitting in Miss Jones’ history class than be here now.”
Connor looked over where Katie and Morrigan stood; Katie directly next to him, her eyes full of contained fear. Morrigan was the polar opposite. She was unwavering, strong, and calculating.
“I know what you mean. Miss Jones meant well but I could never make it even halfway
through one of her lectures before I fell asleep. That seems like heaven compared to where we are now.”
Katie adjusted the sleeves on her long robe. She dried the sweat from her hands with quick rubbing motions.
“We’re going to be okay, Kat. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
Katie released a long breath. The air came out steady and slow. “I know. I’m not going to let anything happen to you, either. Even though we’re friends now—well, you’re still my best friend—I mean, if that’s not over stepping any boundaries with you and Laren.”
“No, that’s fine. When this is all over I hope we can all spend time together. I want you to get to know Laren. I think you two might be able to be friends one day, too.”
“Maybe.”
Connor could still hear the hint of pain in her voice. He kicked himself for choosing this moment to bring up Laren and Katie’s friendship. He just wanted so badly for them to be able to get along. He loved Laren but Katie was still his friend and someone he didn’t want to lose in his life.
These thoughts made him think of Laren. How she would be dying inside not to be here now. He was sure it was only through her own mother’s words that she was staying in the palace now. Despite her humanity, Connor knew she would want to be out in the fight.
Connor felt a twinge of worry for the doctor. If he failed to procure an antidote for Laren, what was she going to do to him?
The increase in noise volume demanded his attention. He made himself look out again across the horizon at the enemy army. Morrigan had been right in her rough estimation of the enemy number. There were thousands of them. Not just ordinary Elite men and women. These were the very worst their species had to offer. They were murderers, manipulators, liars, and psychos. No official uniform set them apart like the men Connor had seen while rescuing Laren. They wore anything from rags and dirty clothes to suits and fine linens.
Their numbers were massive. Vercin’s army only looked larger as the seconds ticked by. There was no doubt that the defenders inside the palace walls were vastly outnumbered. Morrigan had guessed a ratio of four to one. As the enemy numbers became clearer, Connor was guessing that a more accurate number would be a five to one ratio. The freed inmates of Karnag siding with Vercin had vastly put the odds in his favor.
Glancing to his right and left, Connor knew he wasn’t the only one doing math in his head. Warriors from every family were glancing at one another with large eyes. Even the most battle-seasoned soldier had to know that the odds they were facing were bleak at best. If they were going to stand a chance, then belief in victory and determination to win would have to be at the forefront of all their thoughts. With only moments to spare, Connor turned on the battlements to address his people.
“The time has come when we are forced to sacrifice for what we believe.” Connor turned his back to the enemy army advancing on the wall and shouted above the clamor of war. “We stand here now as men and women who believe in something far greater than any of us. We are here now because we believe in hope. In a future free from a tyrant king’s rule.”
Nods and grunts were beginning to ripple among the crowd. Connor did his best to make eye contact with as many of the defenders as he could.
“If they want a future full of death and slavery, if they want to claim the world and cast it into a time history will remember as a second dark age, then I say let them come and take it. But they will have to pry it out of my cold, dead hands because I will not go quietly!”
Roars and yells erupted from the crowd. His followers bellowed and screamed their defiance. Randolph and his family started pounding weapons on their shields in beats of three when Connor paused to take a breath. The beats spread across the rest of the palace as Connor continued, shouting at the top of his lungs.
“If they want to take our futures, then let them come!”
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM.
“If they think they can take our hope, then let them try!”
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM.
“I say let them come!”
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM.
“Let them come!”
BOOM, BOOM, BOOM.
A cheer that shook Connor from the inside out ripped across the palace. Connor took a deep , clearing his hoarse throat. He knew they were ready now. Fear and worry had melted from their hearts. Grim determination was painted across the faces of all inside the walls. Adrenaline pumped through every vein at dangerous speeds.
Connor checked the progress of the enemy. The front lines were almost in range. They marched twenty across the path leading to the palace. More were spread out on either side of the jungle.
The Elites of Karnag were close enough to see details. Every one of them carried a large, intimidating gun. A short black barrel with a huge revolving chamber behind it made it look like a giant revolver.
Connor raised his right hand as he signaled for his men to cover their faces. Connor wrapped a black cloth around his own nose and mouth.
So far Vercin was making the moves they had predicted. He was confident the same virus that had turned Laren human would work on them. What he hadn’t anticipated was that his own doctor would be so eager to help. Even beyond helping, that he would have worked so fast that all the defenders in the wall would be immune now to the virus.
Just like chess.
Connor raised his opposite hand, signaling all the defenders on the wall to hold. The sky was a rippling mass of grey clouds still threatening rain. But the air was soon filled, anyway. Not with rain but with canisters of gas launched into the air and over the wall.
Chapter 30
The grenade launchers made loud thumping noises as they catapulted thick metallic canisters into the air. Hundreds of the containers sailed over the palace walls like tiny shooting stars. Each one of the containers brought with it a tiny tail of gas. When the canisters made contact with the ground, that tail of gas turned into a giant plume.
Smoke filled the palace courtyard and walls. The small metal tubes released giant clouds of toxic gas into the atmosphere. Connor drew his hood as smoke ran across his body and seeped into his eyes.
Watering tear ducts hindered his eyesight for the briefest of moments before he blinked away the gathered moisture. One hand over his mouth and the other protecting his head from the flying containers of gas, Connor took in the scene around him.
Hundreds of gas containers lay on the ground shooting out smoke. Still more flew through the air. The defenders stood, resilient to the virulent gas that should be able to render their Elite gene dormant. It was now nothing more than a nuisance. Still, it was quite a nuisance.
Even with his mouth and nose covered, Connor found himself wanting to cough. The smoke was seeking its way through the cloth covering his mouth. His eyes continued to water despite his best efforts at blinking through the onslaught.
Minutes passed as the enemy continued to fire round after round of the air-borne virus. Connor looked for Katie. She was standing a few feet to his right, her own bandana wrapped around the bridge of her nose and mouth.
Katie noticed Connor watching her and gave him a weak thumbs up. Despite this sign of affirmation, Connor knew her eyes were stinging just as much as his.
Connor coughed involuntarily as smoke entered his lungs.
When would it stop? When would Vercin be content that his plan was working and attack?
While Connor was debating whether or not to pull the men back until the canisters stopped coming, the air was still. No more metal cans flew through the air. For the briefest of seconds, all was quiet. The moment passed too quickly. Suddenly the air was filled again. This time not with smoke but with battle cries as the monsters of Karnag attacked.
Connor watched as they came. Aided by their Elite gene, they made short work of the space between them and the castle wall. They ran with wild cries, eager for the taste of blood. Howls ripped the air as Elites gave in to their own urges. These were men and women who didn’t give a second thought to contro
lling their Elite gene. These were the people who gave in to their beasts within, to the primal rage that set them apart from humans.
More animal than men, the enemy approached. Connor knew they expected a massacre instead of a fight. They had been told by their leader that the gas would inhibit their enemies’ Elite gene. That this would be a slaughter, not a fight. They were in for a rude awakening.
Connor had ordered the men on the wall not to engage the enemy as they approached. No spear or arrows or rocks collided with the enemy as they surged forward. The element of surprise would be their greatest ally. Connor had no intention of losing whatever advantage they had.
Vercin’s army hit the outside wall with skull-cracking force. The entire wall shook as maddened beasts collided with steel and iron.
“HOLD!” Randolph screamed.
Connor could hear him through the sound of war as he and his few dozen family members supported the inside of the gate with shields and their own body weight.
The gate holding for the moment, Connor turned his eyes on the rest of the army seeking a way over the high palace walls. Even with their strength and dexterity, the wall was much too high for any Elite to jump in a single bound, but it seemed Vercin had taken this into consideration. Grappling hooks appeared out of nowhere as climbers sought anchoring spots.
Along with this new threat were those holding metal spikes in their hands along with footwear that reminded Connor of the spikes mountain climbers wore. These crampons were strapped onto boots with metal spikes protruding out at dangerous angles.
Aided by their Elite gene and blood lust, Vercin’s soldiers were scaling the stone wall just like a climber would a snow topped peak. With each step, a spike was driven into the side of the wall with a hand or a foot.
Still Connor held. Left hand in the air he could practically feel the eyes on him. His heart was beating at a thunderous pace. Sweat was forming on his brow under the dark hood he wore.
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