A particularly loud shriek sounded out to Seb’s right and he looked in time to see a blaster shoved beneath the chin of one of the frog-like creatures. A second later its slim head turned to a red cloud and it fell limp.
Seb stopped dead as he watched the creature’s partner wail as if her soul had been torn in two. She fell to the ground, holding her headless lover to her chest.
It took for Gurt to shove Seb for him to switch back into the battle. A quick look to either side and he shook his head. “We can’t stay here.”
“What?” Gurt roared as he continued to rip off shots.
“We can’t stay here.” Seb shoved his way back between Gurt and SA and shouted to the remaining slum dwellers, “Retreat!”
Only a couple heard him at first, so he shouted louder. “Retreat now! Pull back into the alleyways. We need to use the narrow passages to bottleneck them. Do it now!”
The order passed through the crowd in both directions. A few seconds later those who hadn’t already done so headed for the alleys.
Seb called to Gurt and SA, “We have to pull back.”
Sweat glistened off Gurt’s face and he clenched his jaw. “Never!”
“Gurt, you need to do it for the sake of everyone else. If we can get you and SA heading up each alley, we can hold our position for longer and maybe turn the tide of this battle.”
“Gah!” Gurt shouted, but he stepped back a pace towards the alleyways. He sent blaster fire into the soldiers in front of him and the soldiers tried to fire back. Both sides had had many casualties, which had opened up the space for a blaster battle in the square. However, every time one of the crimson robes raised their weapon, they received either a green laser shot or a knife in the face for their troubles.
Seb looked back at the alleys. Their chances might have been slim, but in the alleys, at least they had some hope.
Chapter Fifty-Four
Seb picked the alley on the right with SA, and Gurt took Bruke left. Once they’d retreated into their own separate spaces, they had to fight their own battles. Hopefully they’d meet again on the other side.
Ever consistent, SA sent knife after knife shooting away from her. Each one hit and each one took a life. As the soldiers tried to flood into the tight space, she continued to drop them.
Some of the sewer dwellers had picked up blasters, giving SA the cover she needed when she had to pull more blades from her harness or retrieve some of her already spent ones. Because the tight space limited the Crimson advance, both sides currently held their own.
Seb dodged blaster fire and listened to the beings dying around him. Whenever one of his side fell, another one would move forward and replace it. However, if it came to a numbers game, they’d eventually lose.
The thought of ordering a full retreat flashed through Seb’s mind. At that moment, one of the giants next to him took a shot to the face. It let out a deep wail and then fell like a huge tree.
Seb dodged the large body as it crashed down, the vibration of it shaking through the ground.
The second giant roared, its fierce call booming in the tight space.
The beast rushed forwards into the soldiers, taking several shots to the body as it advanced. None of them slowed it down.
Every swing of the giant’s thick arms took out a line of soldiers, knocking them down quicker than they could get into place.
Seb felt the vibration of the giant’s next roar against his sternum. But one giant wouldn’t be enough. The Crimson army were already positioning so they could regain the advantage.
Then Seb saw something. At the back of the square, at the edge of the darkness, the thick press of crimson-robed bodies thinned a little. He squinted to make it out until he saw they were falling. They were being attacked.
A few seconds later Seb saw the line of kids. Teenagers and young adults, they all had blasters.
They were winning.
Chapter Fifty-Five
Exhausted faces stared back at Seb when he looked at the army of slum dwellers crammed into the alley. The giant held the Crimson soldiers’ attention, which gave the others a moment to catch their breaths.
“Keep it up,” Seb shouted at them. “Backup is on the way.”
Some of the Crimson soldiers reacted to Seb’s call, looking over their shoulders towards the Crimson Palace. Their numbers had visibly thinned because of the young army of slaves, and some of the soldiers looked like they didn’t know which threat to fight, their dark hoods flicking from one opponent to the other.
All the while, the giant continued to smash them, swinging its huge fists and knocking more down with every passing second.
“We’ve got them!” Seb shouted again. “One final push and we’ll ruin this army.”
The giant moved out further into the square. It gave some of the Crimson soldiers a chance to shoot into the alley again. Seb watched a slug-like creature close to him take a blast to the neck. It folded to the ground.
Before Seb could rejoin the fight, a commotion stirred further down the alley. Some of the slum dwellers moved aside as the scrape of the metal manhole covers rang out.
Seb looked at SA. “Something’s going on back there. Are you okay if I check it out?”
SA nodded and continued dropping soldiers with her knives. She threw fewer now, choosing to go closer to her opponents.
When Seb got near to the opening manholes, he saw a creature stand up and the crowd part for it. It had long hair and a straight back. It stood almost as tall as the giant and looked to be female.
SA, the giant, and the front line of their defence had the alleyway covered, so Seb ran over and helped the next being climb out.
A tall and rangy creature, it had a broad chest, stood a head taller than Seb, and had scaled blue skin. “We followed the arrows,” it said to him. “Followed them to the ladders.”
“Where have you come from?” Seb asked.
“The slums. We’ve only just finished putting the fires out.”
“How is everyone?”
The creature looked at the ground.
While they talked, more beings climbed up through the holes.
“How many of you are there?” Seb said.
“Five hundred, maybe a thousand.”
After patting the creature on the top of his arm, Seb pulled a tight smile at him. “Thank you. The battle was turning in our favour. I think you’ve guaranteed we’ll win this.”
Seb moved back towards the front of the alley again. In the time he’d been away, the Crimson army had thinned considerably. Instead of queuing up to get at them, they were fighting attacks from all sides and had withdrawn into the middle of the square.
The giant continued to fight and SA had moved out in amongst the crimson robes. When Seb stepped from the alley, he looked across to see Gurt and Bruke pushing the soldiers back too. “This is our chance,” he said to those behind him. “We need to push forward, now.”
Seb’s army followed him out into the square.
Fire ran through Seb’s hands and it felt like he’d broken every bone in each of them, but he could still make a fist. Deep breaths helped him draw on what little strength he had before he charged at the closest soldier, swung for them, and dropped them to the ground.
Chapter Fifty-Six
Despite the sounds around Seb—the groans of pain, the sobs, and even the screams of some who probably wouldn’t pull through—a strange and eerie stillness had settled on the square now the fighting had stopped. It hung like the low-lying mist and stood in stark contrast to the chaos of the battle that had preceded it.
Bodies littered the square. Bodies dressed in rags and bodies dressed in crimson. Scores of bodies as far as Seb could see. They’d all given up their lives because of one being. Some to defend her. Some to destroy her.
Seb’s stomach tied in knots from the rancid stench of death around him. Blood, shit, and sweat curdled the air. As he looked across the square at the Crimson Palace, acrid bile rose in his throat. His ra
ge overpowered the pain in his fists as he clenched them. They’d come this far; he now had to finish it. But first he needed to check on everyone.
SA stood beside Seb, covered in the blood of their enemies. It glistened on her clothes and skin, dark against her pale complexion and azure stare. She panted from the exertion of the battle. He’d never seen her tired before.
Many creatures lay on the ground, their chests rising and falling with their laboured breaths.
Some of the sewer dwellers had taken the blasters from the Crimson foot soldiers, and they walked through the fallen bodies, checking to see if they still lived. Occasionally a flash of red would cut through the darkness as they executed the creatures.
When Seb saw the remaining frog-like being, he picked his way through the fallen bodies and walked over to her. “I’m so sorry,” he said.
She looked at him through glazed eyes and didn’t speak for a moment. A few seconds later, she said, “He gave his life for a good cause. He died so our son can live. He’d do it again in a heartbeat.” She dropped her head and cried.
A lump lifted in Seb’s throat as he stood over the broken creature. If he’d had any words, he wouldn’t have been able to speak them for the ball of grief choking him. Instead, he dropped down into a crouch—his legs shaking with exhaustion—and hugged her. After a great effort and several gulps, he finally said, “Thank you.” His bottom lip buckled with his grief.
Seb left the creature to mourn the loss of her partner and walked through the carnage. Although he’d seen SA, he hadn’t seen anyone else. He hadn’t seen Sparks in the longest time.
Still in shock from the battle and close to falling over with tiredness, Seb called out, “Sparks.” His ears rang and his head spun. He couldn’t see her anywhere.
“Sparks.”
As Seb scanned the crowd for his small friend, he saw the boys and young men she’d clearly freed. His heart raced harder than ever. Surely she’d made it out with them. Of course she had, the little rat could get out of any tight spot. “Sparks.”
When Seb saw Bruke huddled down on the ground, he also saw—“Gurt?”
Seb ran over to the large Mandulu.
Bruke had Gurt’s head resting in his lap. Blood soaked the area around Gurt’s stomach.
“My god,” Seb said. “What happened?”
“What do you think happened, you moron?” Gurt then took several deep breaths before he could finish. “I got shot, didn’t I?”
“Seb!” The sound came from across the battlefield.
Seb looked up and saw a boy he didn’t recognise. Clearly one of the child soldiers. He waited for him to speak.
“The lady that just rescued us, the small one, has just run into the palace. Six or seven Crimson soldiers followed her in.”
Seb looked back at Bruke and Gurt. Gurt’s eyes rolled in his head, but he still got his words out. “What are you waiting for, you fool? Go and help her.”
A buzz ran through Seb’s broken hands and he wanted to touch the Mandulu. He clearly needed help.
“What are you doing?” Gurt asked with slurred words. “Sparks is in there on her own. You need to go and help her.”
“Seb!” the child soldier shouted again. “They all had blasters.”
Gurt’s entire body rocked with his laboured breaths. “Do I have to go in there and help her myself? What’s wrong with you, you coward?”
Seb watched Gurt lose consciousness again and his hands buzzed harder than before.
The large brute came to a second later. “You’re still here? Get in the palace now!”
A look at Bruke and the wide brown eyes of his friend stared back at him. When Seb looked over his shoulder, he found SA and the giant by his side. After a lingering look between Seb and SA, he looked back at the palace. Gurt was right; he couldn’t leave Sparks in there on her own.
“Look after him,” Seb said to Bruke, and with that, he ran at a full sprint towards the dark building on the horizon.
Chapter Fifty-Seven
Seb ran clear of the dead bodies on the ground in the square and through the gates in front of the palace. They’d been wedged open and, even in the poor light, he saw where Sparks had shorted the electrical panel previously used to control them.
The path leading up to the palace appeared to be darker than any other outside space in the elevated city. It had a foreboding that told Seb to turn around now. But he couldn’t—not with Sparks in there.
The lights inside the palace had all been shut off, the dark corridors impossible to see through. As Seb ran, he pulled his backpack loose and fished his torch from it. He didn’t break stride as he flicked it on and lit up the dank tunnel in front of him. He heard voices up ahead. Maybe Sparks, maybe not.
Despite his exhaustion, Seb kept on at a flat-out sprint towards the voices. When he rounded the corner and found seven Crimson soldiers, his world instantly flicked into slow motion.
They’d formed a circle around Sparks, and the largest of the lot had a blaster pointed at her. Before it could shoot, Seb jumped at it and punched it in the chest. Every blow now screamed pain through his fists and forearms.
Seb knocked four more out before any of them raised a weapon.
Two blasts of red laser fire came at him from the remaining soldiers. Seb dodged them before jumping up with an uppercut into one of the soldiers’ faces. It knocked it down, and before he could finish the last one off, a blue glow of electricity lit the place up. He turned to see Sparks had dropped the final soldier.
Seb’s world returned to a normal speed and he smiled down at his small friend. “Good to see you.”
She nodded. “You too. You ready to finish this?”
Despite the effort it had taken to get there, Seb smiled and said, “Absolutely.”
Chapter Fifty-Eight
After several twists and turns through the palace’s dark corridors, Seb and Sparks came to a massive throne room.
As shadowed as the rest of the place, Seb’s torchlight had little effect in the huge amphitheatre-like room.
When Sparks turned the torch on her tablet on, it lit up the space better and Seb lost the breath in his lungs for a second. “What the …?”
The ceiling stretched so high above them, neither torch could reveal it. The walls—black like most of the rock on the planet—had huge crucifixes attached to them. Each one had the dead body of what looked to be a Crimson soldier.
For a moment, Seb forgot what they’d come there for and stepped towards one of the crucified creatures. Although it wore the crimson robe of the Countess’ army, the hood had been cut from it as if to shame the thing. It had a pale face covered in deep cuts as if it had been whipped, and its listless eyes were open. He didn’t even want to think what the rest of its body looked like.
Seb’s heartbeat ran away from him to gaze upon the poor creature. “What do you think it did wrong?”
“Very little, I’d imagine,” Sparks said.
The creature drew in a weak breath and Seb stepped back a pace. It looked around before it finally settled on Seb and Sparks. “W-w-w-who are y-y-y-y-you?”
It didn’t look like they’d get much out of the creature, but Seb spoke directly to it. “Where is she?”
“The C-C-Countess?”
“Yes.”
The creature’s eyes rolled back in its head and Seb thought of Gurt. He needed to get back to him. “Hurry up! Where is she?”
Instead of replying to him, the creature looked over at a dark mound in the middle of the room. When Seb shone his torch on it, he suddenly understood what they were looking at.
Before he could say anything else, the blue glow of Sparks’ watch dazzled him and the soldier fell limp. “Why did you do that?” he said.
“He looked like he needed to be put out of his misery.”
Seb didn’t respond. Instead, he and Sparks walked towards the huge throne in the middle of the room.
Chapter Fifty-Nine
The Crimson throne sat o
n a pedestal. Made from intricately designed ironwork, it twisted and turned to create a colossal piece of furniture. It looked best suited for a giant. And from what he’d seen of the Countess, that seemed more than appropriate.
Because the back of the throne faced them, Seb called her out before she could turn around. “You have no army left, you cruel bitch. Now’s the time to face the consequences of your actions. We only want to kill you. We’ll make it simple. I promise you, it is your best option. What waits for you out in the square will be much worse.”
Seb’s and Sparks’ footsteps called through the huge hall as they strode up to the throne. “You’ve ruled with cruelty and aggression for too long. At some point that had to come to an end.”
Just as Seb got close to the throne, the whoosh of a jet engine started up, whined for a few seconds, and then boomed as something broke the sound barrier. A second later a huge explosion went off in the palace somewhere.
Seb ran to the front of the throne and stopped dead. “It’s empty.”
“That had to be her just then,” Sparks said. “It sounded like an engine starting up and taking off. And if that explosion was anything to go by, I’d say she just made it impossible for us to follow her.”
The exhaustion of Seb’s time on Solsans washed over him and his legs wobbled. He reached out and steadied himself against a huge metal barrel beside the throne.
When Seb peered into the barrel, he saw it was filled with the flammable wax pebbles. He looked at Sparks to see she’d seen them too.
Chapter Sixty
By the time they’d walked out of the palace back into the square, Seb’s legs shook with the effort of every step. The next one could be the one that threw him to the ground—although, he’d felt that way for hours now.
Fire buzzed through Seb’s broken hands and they were still coated with the blood of his enemies. The cut he’d opened up during the battle remained as an angry gash, but at least it had started to clot.
The Crimson War: A Space Opera: Book Three of The Shadow Order Page 16