The Spider and the Fly

by C.E. Stalbaum

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Given the circumstances by which they’d been removed from power and summarily locked in prison, the members of the Council had every right to be angry and distrustful. And they were.

  “Coveri,” Revask hissed as the cellblock door opened. “I knew you were behind this somehow. Where did Foln really hide you away while he summoned his ship…?” The words died on his lips when Jen slipped inside the room, and his green feline eyes widened in shock.

  “Foln is dead,” Markus said.

  “Dead?” Zalix breathed.

  “The soropan stimulant he was using finally overwhelmed him. His heart couldn’t take it.”

  For a few heartbeats, none of them moved. Tavore was the first to break the silence with a derisive snort.

  “What a pity,” she muttered. “So let me guess: now you plan to take his place?”

  Markus shook his head. “The Mire troops are standing down, and everyone is being released. But right now we have a much bigger problem on our hands.”

  “I should say so,” Revask hissed again as he glared at Jen. “First you stole her from our custody, and now I notice she is completely unrestrained by the suppression collar. Are you going to attempt to convince us that she has miraculously come to our side after—?”

  “Just shut up and listen,” Jen bit out, glaring at each of the councilors in turn. “The Convectorate knows you’re here. The Widow is already refitting a battleship with an astral drive, and it could be here in a matter of days. We have to evacuate the city.”

  During the two years since he had arrived in the city, Markus wasn’t sure he’d ever seen the four disparate alien councilors react to anything in exactly the same way—until now. Tavore’s mouth dropped open, Zalix’s mane prickled, Revask’s ears perked up, and Urekal’s glowing red eyes flickered. Four alien faces, four different expressions, one universal emotion.

  Terror.

  “You told them, didn’t you?” Revask rasped as his eyes fixed on Jen. “Somehow you got a message to them.”

  “The ‘how’ is complicated, but right now it’s also irrelevant,” Markus said. “The point is that we need to begin preparations immediately, and for that we’re going to need the Council’s help.”

  “Of course,” Zalix said, regaining his composure with a crisp nod. “Unfortunately, an outright evacuation may prove difficult. We lack sufficient space and resources to move to the entire population.”

  “You have those two massive Ghallar transports docked outside the city,” Jen pointed out. “Those should have more than enough space to move everyone.”

  “Space yes, but we’re not sure if they are still functional.”

  Her expression sank. “I really hope that’s some dark Thursk humor.”

  “I’m afraid not,” Zalix said soberly. “We haven’t had sufficient power to maintain auxiliary ships for some time.”

  “Either way, we need to know as soon as possible,” Markus said, trying desperately to ignore the pangs of despair gnawing at his stomach. Without the transports, they didn’t have a chance in hell of getting everyone out of here in time.... “The Golem can cram in a few hundred, maybe a thousand if we empty the hangar bay,” he went on. “But otherwise we’re talking about a bunch of small shuttles and freighters—nothing that can move more than a handful of people at a time.”

  “Move them to where, exactly?” Urekal chimed in. “Even if those transports worked, we have nowhere else to go.”

  Markus clamped down on his lip and braced himself. They really weren’t going to like this part…

  “The Mire can take them in,” he said. “We have several bases the Convectorate hasn’t found yet. Space and resources will be tight, but at least it’s a temporary solution while we try to come up with something better.”

  Revask’s ears flattened against his head. “You can’t be serious. Your people just tried to conquer the city!”

  “I realize it’s not exactly ideal, and if you have another option I’m perfectly willing to hear it. But I think it’s the only way.”

  “That may be, but I doubt many will accept it after what has happened,” Tavore said soberly. “We’ve been somewhat isolated in here, but the reports we’ve heard are quite damning. Your soldiers shot and killed unarmed citizens who refused to submit to Lord Foln’s insanity.”

  Markus swallowed heavily. So far he’d only picked up bits and pieces about the aftermath of the coup, and he could scarcely believe what Foln had resorted to. Bringing the Golem to the city had been crazy enough, but shooting unarmed civilians who refused to cooperate? And the worst part was that if Markus had been here, Foln never would have gotten away with it, soropan stimulant or otherwise. Almost all of this could have been prevented…

  Still, no matter what might have happened, there was no point in worrying about it now. What was done was done, and all they could do now was try to make the best of it.

  “I wish I could change that, but there’s nothing for it now,” Markus told them. “We have to leave, and this is the only way.”

  “So it would seem,” Zalix whispered. “Very well, we’ll have to—”

  “This is madness,” Revask snarled as he raked his claws against the bars of his cell. “The Mire is just as much our enemy as the Convectorate. We can’t trust Foln’s lackey, and we certainly can’t trust a Convectorate spy!”

  “Calm down, Eshkarr,” Tavore scolded him. “We’re stuck in a cell, in case you’ve forgotten. They have nothing to gain by lying to us.”

  “They could be trying to flush us back into normal space where there’s a Convectorate fleet just waiting to recapture us!” the Rakashi blurted out. “The Tarreen don’t have access to astral technology. This could all just be an elaborate—”

  “That’s enough,” Zalix said firmly. It was a rare moment when the old Thursk put his metaphorical foot down, and despite how much the population as a whole respected him as a man and as a leader, many people believed he was far too soft to sit in the High Councilor’s seat. This time, however, the resolute tone of his voice left no room for argument. “Whatever poor choices may have led us to this point, we have no option but to deal with it as best we can. We will begin efforts to organize the population. First, however, there is something I need to know: where is Lady Selaris? Did Foln harm her?”

  “No, she’s fine,” Markus told them. “She’s at the hospital attempting to treat Thexyl. I He was badly wounded and may not survive.”

  “What about Doctor Varm and other Mire members?” Tavore asked.

  “Varm is dead. Tayla was injured, but I think she’ll be all right. She’s taken over command and is in the process of pulling her troops back to the ship.”

  Markus didn’t need his telepathy to know that each of them had a million questions they wanted to ask him. But thankfully, they all realized that now was not the best time to answer them.

  “I see,” Zalix said softly. “Then please, release us. Let us make the most of the limited moments we have available.”

  Jen turned to the control panel and mashed in the codes Selaris had given them. The cell locks popped open and swung free.

  “Given all that’s happened in the past few days, the people are going to be hysterical enough before learning that they’re going to have to leave,” Markus said. “It will be up to all of you to keep your people calm and focused on the task at hand.”

  “We will do what we can,” Zalix promised, sweeping his eyes over the others. “And pray that it will be enough.”