I cobbled together a plan to help any fellow Soalians who succumbed to the sedative. My only play? Accidentally-on-purpose disrupt Lolli’s aim if she took a shot at them, then hobble any feeders who approached.
I would look incompetent, but honestly, I no longer cared.
“One minute.”
Lolli unhooked a whip from a metal loop at her waist and extracted a sword anchored to her back. Her armor, like mine, glowed in the dark thanks to a dusting of pritis stone powder, allowing fellow soldiers to more easily spot us in the gloom while repelling feeders. The emblem on her jacket proved brightest.
I counted down the seconds inside my head, my tremors worsening. The same sensation I’d encountered during the last attack gathered in the center of my chest, readying to flare. A heat that had nothing to do with the fires and everything to do with my glow. This time, I would let it happen, certain no one would notice.
“Thirty seconds.”
Eight minutes until Domino’s reinforcements arrived.
The men lurched from their seats, grabbed a large wooden box, and crouched at the edge of the vehicle, one in front of the other. Lolli got in line without a box, and I did the same.
“Five. Four. Three.”
I braced. The truck ground to a screeching, spinning halt, and the soldiers poured out. I stuck to the princess’s heels, springing into a thicker veil of smoke, which I inhaled, because I couldn’t not. And yet, still nothing bad happened. We raced forward without problem, dodging carnival rides I’d only ever seen in holograms and history books, skirting walls of flickering flames, bypassing soldiers and feeders: those engaged in combat and those who’d already fallen, all highlighted by bright beams spilling from a plethora of pritis poles.
Feeders mobbed a trio of soldiers who wobbled on their feet, doing their best to not pass out. A red-robed guy whose skin possessed a soft, golden radiance appeared unaffected by the smoke as he sliced and diced the feeders who focused on the threesome.
A desire to rush over nearly overpowered me.They’ll be okay, they’ll be okay.
I held my breath until I grew dizzy as I tracked Lolli. When I could stand it no longer, I sucked in oxygen, expecting a stream of lethargy to finally hit. But one second passed. Two, three. Six. Still nothing happened.
Was I not really Soalian?
Panic rose, but it didn’t have a chance to flourish. I grazed a feeder as I passed him, drawing his notice. He gave chase, and my instincts kicked in. Without slowing, I spun, netted him, and resumed chasing after the high princess.
So many sights vied for my attention. So many sounds. Total chaos all around. The uninfected and the infected waged a vicious war for victory. Tonight, there would be only one winner and zero second chances. I must get this right.
Incoming! I contorted, barely missing a collision with a group of feeders.Focus.
Lolli kept running. At least the smoke thinned as we approached the field populated with berries. The seven colors of the rainbow glowed brighter and brighter within the fruit, reminding me of pritis and serving as lamps, filling the area with illumination. A majestic sight, to be sure.
The soldiers we’d come with dropped their wooden box and formed a circle around it. Two guys worked to put together large ... drills? The others stood guard, stopping feeders from impeding their progress.
What confused me more was the fires. CURED soldiers weren’t attempting to torch the berries, as Heta had claimed, but the areas beyond them. The berries they fought to protect.
Lolli’s grunt returned my attention to her, and my eyes widened. With the whip and the sword, she was a master class of lethal elegance, destroying the feeders around her. And her speed! The emblem on her jacket blurred with the swiftness of her motions.
The coiled heat in the center of my chest unfurled. Adrenaline ripped through my veins, a searing pulse of energy I unleashed as I leaped into the fray, ready to put my plan into action. I netted feeder after feeder, faster than usual. When I ran out of ammunition, I replaced my clips with only a slight pause in my shots.
Short though it was, the pause cost us, allowing a throng to surge too close for comfort.
“Another horde,” I shouted, and Lolli shifted her focus. Together, we downed them all.
The smoke thickened, clinging to my skin and clothing. The more I fought, the faster I panted and the itchier my throat became, but at least I didn’t weaken. In fact, I only got stronger, the heat spreading, spreading, bringing renewed vitality to my limbs.
Click, click.Another clip depleted. Dang, that had been my last. No matter. I stashed the netter and the dagger, and palmed my short swords.
A feeder swiped at me with razor-sharp claws. Contact. He cut through a seam in my armor. Skin split. Bone might have cracked. Pain exploded in my arm but dulled quickly. I punted him in the abdomen. As he skidded backward, I followed, driving a blade into his torso.
His knees collapsed, and I removed his head. I hadn’t trained with the swords for long, but I’d trained hard, and instincts I hadn’t realized I’d honed guided my motions. I felled another opponent, then another.
“Glowers,” Lolli hissed, exchanging the clip in her gun for the one with green bullets.
My heart skipped a beat when she ran from the field, leaving behind the soldiers we’d come with as they continued messing with whatever they’d brought. I followed her, sticking as close as possible.
