Drowned by Fire (Tales of a Dying Star Book 4)

by David Kristoph

  The enemy beams broadcast their location, flashes of light coming from the second floor of the building across the street. Katy fired without hesitation, aimless shots in the general direction. She heard the laser battery roll back into place to her left. She continued her suppressive fire, rifle kicking against her shoulder. With the heavy laser in place Onero and Milana joined them at the wall and sent their own beams across the street. More enemies began firing from higher floors, some near the roof straight across.

  Then the heavy laser screamed.

  Thick, destructive beams punched into the building, blowing out windows and walls. Glass and debris exploded outward, raining down on the street below. Katy's elbows rested on the wall where she aimed her rifle and felt the vibration of every shot. Steady, pulsing death. It calmed her mind and tingled her stomach as she fired.

  By the time the Children's ground forces reached that street the building across from theirs was torn to shreds. The heavy laser stopped, Jarl slumping back in the seat, exhausted and satisfied as if after lovemaking.

  "What strategic value does that building hold?" Milana wondered out loud. "I didn't think we'd see organized peacekeepers until the palace compound." Katy frowned. It did seem like an awfully strange place to protect.

  "An apartment building," Jarl said. "Nothing more."

  "They are growing desperate," Onero said.

  The vibration in Katy's elbows continued, a steady banging, and in the new silence her ears heard it too. A crashing noise, behind them on the roof.

  Spider glanced at her. He heard it too.

  They sprinted back through the ferns and foliage, stopping when it gave way and revealed the stairwell door ahead. The cable she'd tied barred it from opening more than a few inches, but the gap was there, the door opened.

  Something crashed against the door from the other side. The cables creaked as they pulled taught, but held. A moment later it happened again.

  Onero appeared over her shoulder, with Milana close behind. He shot Katy a hard look before hefting his rifle. Two blasts hit the flat metal surface, but the third made it through the gap in the door. The crashing stopped.

  They all stood there, where the grass clearing met the ferns, rifles aimed. Katy breathed through her nose, waiting.

  The high-pitched ping ping ping of laser fire answered them, shooting in random directions through the gap in the door. Katy threw herself flat with the others. Spider returned fire until Onero held up a hand to stop him.

  Onero turned back to the door and raised his voice. "All who surrender to the Children will be unharmed." Silence. "Throw down your weapons peacefully."

  Gunfire answered him, more random shots through the small gap that sizzled in the grass and bushes. No, not random, Katy thought: the cable holding the door closed was charred and frayed. How long would it hold? Were they trained peacekeepers, or just ordinary steadfasts resisting?

  Onero cocked his head, listening to the receiver in his ear. His eyes widened. "Katy, Spider," he said, pushing to his feet, "stay here and keep them inside. Yell if the door's breached."

  "Where are you going?"

  "Incoming aircraft from the north," he called over his shoulder. Then he and Milana were gone, running through the bushes.

  Across the clearing Spider snarled at Katy. It was just a little girl! she wanted to shout, but there was no point just then. She would defend herself from her allies after defending herself from her enemies.

  The crashing against the door resumed.

  Soon the sound of aircraft engines screamed, followed by the familiar pulsing of the heavy laser. It sounded like the planes were zooming just overhead. However, she dared not take her eyes away from the door. Her finger pressed against the trigger, ready to fire if the cable finally gave and the door swung wide.

  A round shape wedged between the ground and her breast reminded her of an option. Her aim wasn't good enough to throw the grenade into the doorway from thirty feet away, but if she ran up to the door and dropped it inside...

  That would blow the door open, she thought. That was fine if it killed everyone inside, but who knew how many were in there? She might kill one or two, and open the way to the roof for the rest.

  She rolled sideways and pulled two grenades loose, placing them next to her on the grass. I'll use them if the door fails, she decided.

  She could hear noise deeper inside. Unseen gunfire, the scuffle of battle. The Children were pushing up the building! Someone on the other side of the door began shouting orders. He sounded desperate.

  Katy flinched as an explosion ripped the sky somewhere to her right, north of the building. She didn't know if it was friend or foe, but the pulsing she felt in the grass was proof their laser battery still functioned.

  More than one rifle began shooting at the cable barring the door. Spider fired at them, a single shot every few seconds, and Katy emulated him. It slowed them down at first, but soon they stopped caring, their gunshots quick and hurried. Patches of black smoldered across the grass, the burned smell tart in the air. The cries inside grew louder, more desperate.

  The cable on the door snapped and a peacekeeper crashed through, falling to the ground in front of them.

  Two beams from Spider stopped him from rising. Katy fired at the next peacekeeper who appeared, catching him in the shoulder, then chest. His white plated armor absorbed the shots but knocked him back. Her next volley tapped along his breastbone and neck, the last beam catching him through the helmet. He crumpled.

  Before more could come, she grabbed a grenade from the grass. She touched the trigger, ready to press and throw. The sound of aircraft and battle dimmed away as she focused on the black doorway.

  The darkness stirred with motion. She depressed the trigger on the grenade and pulled her arm back.

  A peacekeeper emerged. Two Children walked behind, pushing him forward with their guns.

  Spider fired a single shot into the captive's head before stopping himself. The two Children cursed and fell to the ground, shouting. Spider jumped up and held his hands out in apology, rushing forward.

  The grenade was still in Katy's hand.

  Oh no.

  Katy leapt to her knees and hurled the grenade over the bushes to her left. Two heartbeats later the air concussed, sending leaves flapping and dirt scattering across the rooftop. Katy slumped back to the grass and sighed.

  "Fuckin' shit," one of the Children said, looking from Katy to Spider as if one of them might shoot again, "didn't know we held this roof."

  The other laughed with relief. "Glad we sent this star-licker out first." He rose and kicked the peacekeeper, rolling him onto his back. A hole in his face smoked.

  "And you with that damned grenade..." the first said to Katy. They all turned their eyes to her and she forced a smile. No harm, no matter.

  An explosion in the sky reminded them of the battle. High overhead a Riverhawk tumbled through the air, disintegrating in a thousand tiny whistles as it fell into the city, leaving a trail of black smoke. It exploded out of sight. The Children nodded before disappearing back into the stairwell. Katy and Spider returned to the laser battery in silence.

  Jarl pointed the heavy laser high, occasionally firing steep shots into the air. Seven of the Empire's planes retreated east over the city, while one remained overhead, desperately dodging three of the Children's craft, identifiable by the cables that hung beneath one. Soon the enemy plane fell. Other debris of all sizes dotted the sky, some floating to the ground on parachutes. Probably steadfast pilots, Katy thought. A stray beam struck one chute, accelerating its fall.

  Onero looked a question at Katy. She explained what had happened at the stairwell.

  "Do you understand why I said shoot anyone we see on the roof?" he asked.

  "They would have pushed to the roof regardless," she said. "They were fleeing the Children down below, not trying to stop us because a child told them we were here. An unfortunate coincidence, but a coincidence nonetheless."

/>   "Maybe," was all he said before turning away. He spoke a few words to Milana, who nodded.

  Katy watched their Riverhawk spiral down toward their rooftop to pick them up. I'm more resolute than all of you, she wanted to curse. I've planted bombs in the inner city while the rest of you stood around and schemed. Hesitating to kill a little girl didn't make her weak.

  She clung to that thought as they attached the cables and ascended, Spider cackling at her all the while.

  Chapter 17

  They advanced in that fashion, roof-hopping while the ground forces searched building-by-building, before stopping to pray as their Mother set behind the western section of the Wall.

  "The army has earned a rest," Onero declared when their prayers were through. "We'll begin anew by the light of the Mother in the morning." He relayed the orders on his wrist-computer.

  The roof they'd chosen for the night was wider than most, with some sort of market on the ground level. Only half the roof bore grass; the other half was paved with square tiles, littered with chairs and lounging pads where inhabitants of the apartments could come and sunbathe. They'd crossed half the city in the afternoon, even with the ground forces slowly and methodically checking buildings. With luck they would reach the palace compound in time for tomorrow's noon-day prayer. Wouldn't that be a prayer to remember, kneeling by the palace with the false god's heir in chains?

  A pit was recessed into the ground and surrounded by black bricks. Onero twisted a knob on the side and used a tool from his pocket to create a spark, and a fire roared to life. "We're going to look for food downstairs," he said, picking up his rifle.

  "You sure that's wise?" Milana asked, frowning. They were deployed two blocks ahead of the ground forces, so their building had not yet been searched.

  "We've been driving the peacekeepers back," Onero said, "they've given us little resistance. Besides, I want to taste a potato."

  "They'll be fine," Katy said, "don't be so scared." Her voice held a note of sharpness, and Milana glowered. Onero gave Katy a smile before disappearing with Spider into the greener half of the roof.

  It felt good to agree with Onero where the other woman had not. Besides, her stomach growled at the thought of fresh food; the bread in her pocket was hard and stale, and baked with sawdust in the grain.

  The heavy laser fired once, and a burst of small sparks drifted through the air above them. "A scouting drone," Jarl said, twisting in his seat to apologize. "Nothing to worry about. They fall easy."

  Milana deposited herself in one of the chairs, stretching out her long legs and squeaking out a yawn. Katy preferred to feel the grass on her backside, and didn't want to sit next to the woman, so she walked to the edge of the garden and sat against a tree. The rough bark tugged at her hair, but she didn't mind. Trees were a luxury few civilians had, and she wanted to savor it as long as she was there.

  Soon this will all be ours, she thought. Not just for steadfasts, but for men and women of all kinds. The thought still didn't feel true. As a maintenance worker she'd come and gone through the inner city every day, always a visitor, never belonging. It still felt that way: as though she were only visiting, soon to return to the crumbled building set against the levee.

  She shook her head. She would never go back. They would take the city or die in the attempt, and those were the only two choices she would accept.

  Katy had another choice, once. Charlie, a steadfast, who could have been her way out. Her way in. He'd loved her, it was obvious, and joined the Children just to be with her. So young and innocent and eager to please. He didn't hold the power or danger of Onero, but he had a certain awkward charm about him.

  Charlie would have taken her for a partner. Steadfasts paired with civilians occasionally, and were given all the luxuries their partners held. All Katy would have needed to do was ask. Brought into the city, given apartments of their own. Maybe even have her genetic switch unlocked to bear a child if her husband completed two tours. Black market doctors claimed to possess the ability in the outer city, but Katy shivered at the thought of trusting them. No, if she'd paired with Charlie their child would have been legitimate.

  It would have meant pretending to idolize the Emperor, worshiping her Mother in secret. But she'd decided long ago she could do that. She'd done that long enough while working as a maintenance worker, saying the words and making the prayer signals whenever the Emperor was mentioned. That was easy. That she could do.

  She'd been so close.

  What she couldn't do was abandon her Mother entirely. Once selected for the Exodus Fleet her awkward boy was lost to her. She'd still considered asking him to stay, to remain in Luccar while his family left for a faraway star, but she'd kissed him and looked into his eyes and knew the chance was gone. He probably chose not to complete the mission, Katy thought. Why would someone turn down the chance to start their life anew?

  She couldn't blame him. She lifted her eyes to the moon Latea, a glowing semi-sphere of white showing through the branches of her tree. Charlie wasn't the only part of the mission--it had succeeded just fine without him. She wondered if he survived the attack, if he was aboard the captured Olitau right then.

  I wonder if he's thinking about me.

  In one corner of the tiled roof the heavy laser pulsed, illuminating the neighboring buildings with green light. They'd mounted the gun in the corner so it could aim down two cross streets, and occasionally Jarl fired one shot to give light to the ground below. If I'd asked Charlie to stay I'd be in the middle of this chaos instead of above it, she decided. Yes, the path their Mother shone for them was the right one. There was no use thinking of what might have been.

  Katy looked down and saw Milana staring at her, eyes green and bright. "What do you want?" Katy asked.

  Milana gave an exaggerated shrug.

  I'm sick of everyone doubting me, most of all her. Katy stood and approached. "I don't know what your problem is, always sneering and smiling like you know some joke nobody else has heard. I've been here longer than you, with Onero longer. You would be wise to remember that."

  Milana laughed, a throaty sound that carried across the roof. She looked away from Katy. "You're jealous."

  "No, I'm not," Katy said, more defensively than she had intended. That only made Milana laugh again. "What have you two been talking about, anyways?"

  "Not jealous indeed," Milana muttered before answering. She took on the tone of an adult lecturing a child. "We've talked about what will happen when Luccar falls. How to run the city, who to put in charge and where, all that good stuff I'm sure you've thought about yourself."

  I haven't thought about it much at all, Katy realized. She nodded anyways.

  "The city's too big as it is, Onero figures. He wants to divide it up, giving sections to the lieutenants he trusts most to manage. Barrel-born Bill, Jack the Fool. Spider, though Mother save whoever gets stuck under his rule." She smirked. "And us. A lot of the others don't trust women, but I've been convincing Onero that you and I would do just fine with the right people under us to carry orders."

  Katy considered that. She hadn't thought about what would happen beyond a vague dream of inner city luxury, fruit and clean air and rooftop gardens in the sun. It made sense for Onero to divide things up. She looked past Milana to the south, where the tall buildings stretched away before disappearing into the dark shape of the Wall in the distance.

  "The east," Katy finally decided. "I want part of the city in the east, where I could stand on top of the Wall and watch our Mother rise each morning." She'd never ventured that far into the city, so everything on that side of the Chain seemed dangerously foreign, but that only excited her more. And she'd made pilgrimages before, traveling north and then east around the city to watch Saria rise on the horizon. If she could watch that every morning, view uninhibited by a steel wall, she would be happy.

  "Well I think one of the others has claimed the east already," Milana said, "but the north-east or south-east would work just the same. Me
, I don't care what I get, although my husband will want somewhere with a fish market. I've never met a man who eats fish as much as he, bones and all."

  Husband. For some reason that eased Katy's mind, made the woman less of a threat.

  Milana pointed a finger at her. "So stop staring daggers at me whenever I speak to Onero. You've nothing to worry about... at least, not from me."

  "Sorry," Katy said. Something in the comment made her think, though. "What do I have to worry about, then?"

  "You can't hesitate," Milana said. "Storming the Wall, taking these rooftops... if you hesitate you endanger us all. And Onero notices. He doesn't miss a thing. And the others sense it, and don't trust you for it. You need to act, to prove to the others how determined you are. Something memorable. It may be an unhappy truth, but it's still a truth."

  The little girl, Katy thought. She was just hiding on the roof, she was no danger at all. But it felt less true the more she thought it. The girl probably had alerted the peacekeepers to their position. Katy and the others would probably be dead if not for the Children from the ground arriving in time. And Katy would have been at fault. She'd be too dead to feel the guilt, but alive she felt it fine. If I had killed the girl, would that have been enough? Would killing someone so young and innocent really appease the others? She pictured the captured peacekeeper being thrown from the Wall, and the rabid crowd that cheered.

  The other woman stared at her, waiting for a response. "Yeah. You're right," Katy said.

  Milana nodded. "No more excuses. Let your rifle speak."

  A crash came from behind them, deeper in the garden. Milana jumped to her feet, gun at the ready. Someone shouted from the stairwell.

  The two women looked at one-another before jogging into motion. Through the dense greenery they ran until it cleared at the stairwell, where Spider stood at the door with a cloth bag strapped over his shoulder. He aimed his gun with one arm and reached into the doorway with the other, pulling someone onto the rooftop.