We were back in our room.Marinah commanded the men like she was born to lead, and her handling of Che and Ruth was pure brilliance.The kids had finally met their match, and truth be told, so had the rest of us.
Her plan for the island wasn’t the one I would’ve chosen, but it was solid.She had a natural gift for strategizing when she didn’t overthink it.She didn’t root everything solely in military texts; she was intuitive, grounded, and unpredictable all at once.The Federation wouldn’t know whether they were coming or going.
I’d waited until now to explain my role in her plans, and predictably, she wasn’t thrilled.“I’m part of your guard for a reason,” I told her firmly.“Beck babysat me, and now I’ll be babysitting you through this fight.”
Her response was a very unladylike snort.I glared.“You’ll be where the action is, so don’t worry about me getting bored.”
She sighed and gave in, albeit ungracefully.“You enjoy this entirely too much,” she said.
I flicked one of her braids.“It’s called war, baby.”
Her grin stretched into something mischievous, her eyes gleaming with that telltale spark of challenge.“You only call me ‘baby’ when you’re trying to push my buttons.”
I placed a hand over my heart, feigning innocence.“Caught me.Now eat your dinner so we can get to work, and you can save the world.”
She stared at the plate in front of her, frowning.“I’m too nervous to eat.”
“Eat,” I ordered, my tone leaving no room for argument.Her Beast didn’t like it, and the flash of K-5 in her gaze proved it.Marinah grunted in irritation, but I stood my ground, crossing my arms and planting my feet.
“Fine, I’ll eat,” she whined, picking up her fork.
My Beast stirred with satisfaction at the small victory.Once she started, she didn’t slow down, even when there was a knock at the door.
I opened it to find Nokita.Marinah barely glanced up from her plate.“Report,” she said through a mouthful of food.
To my surprise, Nokita snapped to attention.Marinah gave me a quick side-eye, clearly caught off guard by the formality.Nokita had always been comfortable around her.This shift was unexpected.It was a display of respect, acknowledgment of the stakes we were facing.
“I can jam the frequency to stop the release of hellhounds in a small area only,” he began, “I can only reach a hundred yards in all directions.It’ll stop some hellhounds, but not nearly enough.”
“Can you make more than one jammer?”Marinah asked, shoveling another bite into her mouth.
“We don’t have the parts I need on the island,” Nokita replied, shaking his head.“I could probably scavenge on the mainland, but we don’t have time.Cabel also asked me to inform you that most of the underwater hellhounds start about ten miles out from the citadel and stretch almost to the shipyard’s doorstep.The key piece of info he wanted to emphasize is that there are no hellhounds near Warrior Bay.”
Warrior Bay, a mile from the citadel, was named after we took over the island.I felt a small flicker of relief at the news.At least the Federation wasn’t attacking the entire island.Still, there was no denying it now: Knet was working with them.He knew we’d use the tunnels at the first sign of trouble to bring the humans to the citadel.Destroying the citadel was their main goal.
Marinah leaned back in her chair, staring at the ceiling as she thought.“I want our human archers stationed at the shipyard first,” she finally said.“They’ll use the explosive rounds to fire at hounds leaving the water.I want them to pull back once the remaining hellhounds get too close to shore.Have transports ready to move them to strategic locations as needed.Once they’ve done as much damage as possible, we’ll bring them back to the citadel.If it comes to a final stand, they’ll post up in the upper windows or on the roof.”
Missy, Beck’s mate, had started the archery group when she arrived on the island.What began as a small team had grown into over two hundred men and women, all highly proficient with their weapons now.They’d learned to shoot the throats of the hounds with explosive rounds and remove their heads.Missy wasn’t the type of human to sit on the sidelines.If any mother deserved a daughter like Ruth, it was her.
Without a cure for hellhound bites or scratches, humans couldn’t risk close combat.The longbows gave them the advantage of distance.For months, Missy’s group had been making and stockpiling arrows, training relentlessly to improve their accuracy.Their precision had become so reliable that the Shadow Warriors could wade into a horde of hellhounds with confidence, knowing they’d have long-distance support taking down monsters too.
Marinah drummed her fingers on the table, deep in thought.“Is there any way we could make our own receivers to unlock the hellhounds?”
“We don’t need to,” Nokita replied.“I’ve been studying one of their devices.I can use one of ours, readjust the frequency, and, in theory, use a radio as a trigger to release the hounds.It’ll all come down to timing.”
Marinah nodded and leaned forward.“Have Cabel move as many of the Federation hellhounds as possible to the bay.The lack of hounds near the citadel tells us exactly where the Federation plans to strike.We’ll have an undead army of surprises waiting for them when they arrive.”
“You want the frequency interrupter set up at the docks?”Nokita asked.
“No,” she said, shaking her head.“The docks aren’t as populated as the area closer to the citadel.Find a location somewhere in the middle, a place that will disrupt the signal for as many hellhounds as possible.They will use their controllers and depend on them to work.I doubt they will try again.The fewer hounds that come to shore in the outer areas, the fewer we will need to clean up after the battle.”
“I have the perfect spot,” Nokita assured her.
“Any progress with the larger sub?”Marinah asked.
Nokita tilted his head slightly, his gaze drifting past us.“There won’t be time.We’re stuck with the small one for now.That said, there are water mines in one of the military stockades.I won’t have the chance to set them up before the attack, but when this is over, I’ll make sure their sub never gets near the island again.I can also rig an underwater perimeter fence to alert us the next time they try something.”He brightened slightly.“The good news is the gatling gun is operational, thanks to one of the islanders.”
Marinah considered this for a moment before giving her orders.“The Federation doesn’t know we’re onto them, so we might not need it, but post two Shadow Warriors along the shore road near the shipyard with the gun.If we’re wrong about where the Federation attacks, the extra firepower will stop a good number of soldiers.”
