Virtue of War

by L O Addison

  “They’ll try,” Beck said with a nod. “But that panel Lio knocked down has their ship pinned. It should buy us enough time to get back to the Resistance base.”

  At least he hoped. He couldn’t see anyone on their tail, but he knew the Ascendancy would do everything in their power to chase after the Virtue they’d stolen.

  Something warm and wet landed on his hand and slipped into his lap. Beck recoiled and looked down. Lio’s Fragment rested on his knee. It was covered in Red’s saliva, but otherwise unharmed. Red sat next to him and cocked his head, letting out an uncertain chirp.

  Beck looked between the dragon and the Fragment and shook his head in disbelief. “Too freaking clever,” he whispered, unsure if he was talking to the dragon or Kaylin.

  “That’s the Fragment,” Matteo said, his tone dumbfounded.

  Beck nodded. “Red brought it back.”

  He’d seen Kaylin toss the Fragment off the edge of the tarmac, but he’d figured the Ascendancy would be able to easily retrieve it from the lower floor. He should have known better than to think Kaylin would do something so useless. She must have commanded Red to pick it up and bring it back to the transport.

  Red turned in a circle, seeming to realize for the first time that Kaylin wasn’t in sight. He sniffed at the seat Beck was sitting in, where Kaylin had been only minutes before. Then the little dragon darted off and circled the inside of the transport, nosing around every corner as he searched for his owner.

  Red dropped his camouflage, his scales turning to a bright, panicked shade of yellow as he realized Kaylin wasn’t aboard. The dragon raced back over to Beck’s side and stared up, anxiously shuffling his paws as he let out a high-pitched whimper.

  Beck swallowed hard, struggling to choke back the lump in his throat. “Sorry, little guy,” he murmured. “She didn’t make it back.”

  Red must have sensed his distress, because the dragon recoiled back. Then he chirped and thunked his tail against the floor, as if demanding Beck do something. When Beck didn’t move, Red leaped over his seat and rammed against his shoulder against the door, releasing a panicked yelp. The dragon’s leg was bleeding again, smearing dark blood on the stark metal floor and making him slip. He fell heavily on his injured leg, letting out a cry of pain.

  “Red!” Beck said sharply.

  The dragon froze, looking over his shoulder. A wild panic blazed in Red's eyes, and he trembled with nervous energy. Beck leaned back, suddenly realizing he was trapped on board a small transport ship with a fire-breathing dragon that was on the verge of going berserk.

  “Don’t piss that thing off,” Matteo said, his voice tense with fear.

  Beck ignored him and took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down. “It’s all right, little guy,” he told Red, putting on a reassuring tone. “She’s not dead.”

  Red remained frozen for a long moment, his sides heaving as he panted heavily. But then he took a hesitant step forward and hesitantly lay his head in Beck’s lap. He stared up at Beck with wide eyes and let out a quiet, cautious chirp.

  Beck reached out with a shaky hand and rested it on the creature’s scaly head. Red flinched at his touch, but he didn’t back away. Beck gently stroked the dragon’s forehead, just like he’d seen Kaylin do.

  Someone was going to have to look after the dragon, if Kaylin wasn’t there to do it. And Beck had a feeling he was the only caretaker Kaylin would approve of.

  The dragon tensed and let out a tiny growl. But after a few moments, he relaxed, leaning into Beck’s hand.

  “Good boy,” Beck said softly.

  Red glanced back over to the door he’d been ramming and gave a low whimper. Then he stared up at Beck, his silver eyes widened in a pleading look.

  “We're going to get her back,” Beck whispered. “I promise.”

  41

  Kaylin

  Kaylin woke to silence. Dead, empty silence.

  In all her years alive, she didn’t think she’d ever been in a place this quiet. She tried to open her eyes, but realized she already had. Darkness surrounded her, just as pure and deep as the silence. Her heart began to pound, filling her ears with the sound of rushing blood.

  “Hello?” she said.

  The word came out in a whisper, but the sudden noise still made her jump. Her head bumped against something hard, and she winced, reaching up to touch her scalp. Something sticky clung to her fingers.

  Blood. She brought her hand in front of her face, staring at it.

  There was only blackness. She knew she should be absolutely terrified, but her brain felt clogged and muddy, and she could only feel a dull sense of unease.

  They’d drugged her. The thought crossed her mind, and she clung to it, trying to make sense of it. She remembered throwing the Fragment, and then being slammed back against the ground, and then there’d been splitting pain in her head, and then… darkness. But it’d been a fleeting darkness, only lasting for a few jarring heartbeats. Then she’d woken to hands grabbing her, and piercing light, and painfully loud noises.

  Then darkness had descended again. And now she was… here. Whatever this place was.

  She felt around, and her shaky hands found a perfectly smooth wall behind her and a floor beneath her, which she was sitting on. There was only open air in all other directions. Cold dread began to creep into her limbs, pushing away the numbness.

  “Red?” she whispered.

  There was no response. Her spinning mind couldn’t figure out if that was a good thing or not. She was obviously somewhere she shouldn’t have been, so she should probably be glad Red wasn’t here, too. But her stomach twisted as she realized she had no idea what had happened to him.

  “Hello?” she said again, her voice shaking.

  Something shifted to her left. She gasped and turned toward it, her hands automatically clenching into fists. Then she heard a quiet groan and a mumbled word that sounded like nonsense. But there was a hint of an accent in the noise, making it sound oddly familiar.

  It took her sluggish mind a moment to realize why.

  “Lio?” she murmured.

  For a long moment, there was no reply. Then she heard more shifting, and Lio groggily said something in his own language. She couldn’t understand a word of it, but that didn’t stop relief from slamming into her.

  She wasn’t alone.

  “It’s Kaylin,” she told him.

  Another pause. Then Lio said, “Where are we?”

  Kaylin shook her head, immediately regretting it as a wave of pain flooded her skull. “I was hoping you’d know.”

  “The Ascendancy has us,” he said, and this time, it wasn’t a question.

  “Yes.” She couldn’t think of any other possibility. She reached up and rubbed her aching temples. “Are you hurt?”

  She heard more shifting as he checked himself over.

  “I’m bruised and a bit cut up,” he finally said. “But nothing worse.”

  “Same with me,” Kaylin said. It was at least one thing they had going for them. She swallowed hard as she struggled to clear her mind. “The Virtues. What happened to them?”

  “Beck was able to get hold of the Virtue of War,” Lio said. “The Ascendancy has the Virtue of Healing.”

  Kaylin’s stomach dropped. “What are they going to do with it?”

  “Activate it and use it,” Lio said, his voice grim.

  “Why did they take us?” Kaylin asked.

  “I’m not quite sure,” Lio admitted.

  They both went silent, and Kaylin felt fear begin to overwhelm her. She closed her eyes, even though it made no real difference, and took a few deep breaths. In and out, in and out. Breathe out anxiety, breathe in clarity. Just like Beck had taught her years ago, when she’d first started sniping.

  “They’re probably going to kill us,” she said.

  “Yes,” Lio said, his voice dull.

  Kaylin nodded. “I’m not going to die without trying to get that Virtue away from them.”

  T
his was no longer just about stopping an invasion. This was about protecting her brother. Jaxon was alive, but if the Ascendancy had their way, he wouldn’t be for long. And neither would anyone else on Earth.

  “I don’t think we have any chance of stopping them,” Lio said, his voice filled with exhausted dread.

  “Either way, we’re going to die,” Kaylin said. “So we might as well try.”

  Lio didn’t reply. Silence descended on them again, but blood pounded in Kaylin’s ears. She forced herself to focus on the sound of her desperation and anger flowing through her veins.

  “Do it for Marin,” she said to Lio.

  His silence stretched out longer, and Kaylin held her breath, worried she might have quieted him for good.

  Finally, Lio let out a shuddering breath. “I’ll do it.” He paused for a moment and then hesitantly said, “But what exactly are we going to do?”

  “I have absolutely no idea,” Kaylin admitted.

  “We need a plan,” Lio said.

  A plan. Kaylin clung to the idea, forcing her aching brain to concentrate on it. Plans were her specialty. She was a thief, after all. Plotting out her actions was the only way she ever succeeded. And stayed alive.

  Kaylin rubbed her hands over her face, clearing away the last of the cobwebs from her mind.

  “Well then,” she said. “Let’s get to work.”

  About The Authors

  L.O. Addison

  L.O. Addison is a science fiction author from Northern California. When she’s not writing or working at her day job in the tech industry, she enjoys exploring the California wilderness, tinkering with programming projects, and cooking the most obscure recipes she can get her hands on. You can contact her at loaddisonbooks@gmail.com or get in touch with her on Facebook.

  Justin Sloan

  Justin Sloan is the bestselling author of the Space Fantasy and Superhero series SHADOW CORPS, BIOTECH WARS, and coauthor of the vampire post-apocalyptic series RECLAIMING HONOR (A Kurtherian Gambit series) with Michael Anderle.

  He also writes video games with credits on games such as Game of Thrones and Walking Dead, and has sold/optioned several screenplays/teleplays. Because of his five years in the U.S. Marines, you just might find some of his Devil Dog attitude coming to play in his novels. Justin's books are available in audio and print editions, and he has sold Turkish and French rights to several of his series.

  You can also find Justin’s fan group on FB. Enjoy!