Kartega

The domes reeked of Starblades and fear. Leona had spared no one as the NSO scoured the flats and marketplaces in the search of Sid and the rest of the escapees. Every nook and crevice of the domes was left vulnerable and open to the relentless disruption caused by armed men trampling through. Hiding the Freedom Runners had grown increasingly difficult. Despite Tann still having a lot of friends in the domes, it was only a matter of time before one of them got tired of sharing the minimal amount of food they earned or not being able to travel from dome to dome to see their loved ones. Tired enough to turn them all in. The queen cut off all food supplies into the domes and the effect was noticeably dreadful. People were angry and from what Sid had seen so far, anger fueled stupidity.

She pulled the hood of the tunic Lexia gave her over her eyes and ducked behind a shop tent, into the shadows of dank fabrics and further away from the commotion of the dome’s center. If one could even call it a commotion these days. Since the NSO infestation, the dome’s activity levels had gone down to a bare minimum. Sometimes, at night, it was so quiet that Sid wondered if Leona had wiped out all of the native population and she’d simply been missed, again. Even the Magic locations were non-operational; this many eyes on the streets was bad for business.

Heavy booted footsteps echoed on her right and she buried herself further in the tent’s coverings until they passed. It could have been anyone but she wasn’t about to test her luck to find out. She was already running late to meet Tann and the rest of the rebels, and getting into a confrontation with a Starblade was not on her list of things to do.

In the past few days that they’d spent hiding in the dome, they had nearly tripled the number of Domers eager to help with their plan to foil the queen and shut down the ring. Word was spreading fast that the Freedom Runners had a weapon that could change everything — despite Sid’s protests when the rumor first started. She still wasn’t comfortable with having to lead the rebels into an attack, and the added pressure of living up to the high expectations that had been dropped on her shoulders wasn’t helping. Sid was many things but she certainly did not feel like any kind of weapon at the moment. Weapons don’t hold their breath and hide behind dusty curtains.

She slid down the hall and hit the ground, crawling to the edge to make sure the coast is clear. She could see the flat they were meeting in today across the core and as soon as there was no one around, she made a run for it. It was more of a brisk walk really, running attracted too much attention.

Tann, Ashlan and Dalrak were already waiting for her inside with the rest of the growing number of Freedom Runners. Twenty-four in total; not nearly enough to take on the Starblades and queen’s guard in one go. They would need to split up, strike from different angles and box the threats in. She looked around the room. None of the Domers that stared back looked like they’d be up for the task. Sid wasn’t even sure she was up for it herself but at least she had magic.

“Where were you?” Tann asked.

“Taking in the scenery,” she said and stuck her tongue out. “I went back to Magic.”

“She isn’t there, Sid. You need to give it up.”

He was talking about Serryl. Sid had made it a point to check in at the club every few hours just in case she spotted the illusive owner. With all Magics shut down, there was no way to get a hold of Serryl and, as expected, the woman was impossible to track down. Sid’s entire plan rested on Serryl’s help so she continued to check in, despite the annoyed looks she got from the rest of the team when she returned.

“We need magic,” she said decisively, “there’s no winning this without it.”

“Maybe we’ll be fine on our own?” Someone asked from the back of the flat.

She looked at Dalrak who met her gaze and shook his head. “Seems like that’s a big no.”

“You don’t know that!” Another voice, lighter this time. A girl about Sid’s age with eyes so dark she had to look away. The girl was quite a bit shorter than Sid with hair long enough to touch her thighs, braided loosely across her back. But it was her face that drew Sid in. Pale with a deep scar running across her right eye. Sid tried not to think about what could have happened to cause the injury when the girl spoke up again. “Well?” She asked, her hands on her hips.

Starspit. They actually think they have a shot at this. No magic, no blades. The fools!

Eyes wild, she stepped forward. A few Domers instinctively stepped back but the rest held their position, eager to see what Sid would do next. Her gaze was still fixed on the girl when she waved her hand at Ashlan. “Thrust your blade,” she ordered.

Ashlan recoiled at first but when she nodded approvingly, he pressed his finger to the blades center and activated the surge. The weapon glowed in his hand and he made his way to the girl. The rest of the group encircled her in a protective hub but Sid waved them off.

“Let her show me what she thinks she can do!”

The girl didn’t shrink back, instead, she straightened her back and grinned straight at Ashlan. His footsteps quickened as he rushed to her, blade ready to strike. The girl raised her fists but Ashlan was quicker, more trained and much more powerful. He leapt in the air, pulling the blade behind him and thrusting it at the girl. She shrieked, covered her face with her hands and recoiled back into the crowd. In front of her, Ashlan landed with a loud thud, the blade’s electric sparks just centimeters away from her tear-stained face.

“Now,” Sid said with a grin, “attack me.”

“Sid, this isn’t going to-”

“Attack,” she cut him off, “me.”

Ashlan rolled his eyes and looked back at Tann who gave him a dumbfounded shrug. He turned to face her, blade at the ready, the tip shining bright. Ashlan pivoted on his heels, taking one last look at her as if beckoning her to change her mind. She didn’t — wouldn’t.

With a forceful grunt, Ashlan soared her way. The blade pulsated with energy and she could hear the electricity run through its core. The closer he got, the louder it became until she could hear nothing else but its powerful shriek. The crowd gasped but she could barely register their voices. Sid wasn’t afraid, she wasn’t even remotely bothered. Compared to what Tazmin and the queen had put her through, this was a walk in the stars. Right now, in this small flat full of Domers with a blade rushing for her throat, she was in control.

She took one step to the right and positioned herself in Ashlan’s direct path.

His eyes were ablaze with concentration as he wielded the weapon, arm stretched out and ready to strike her dead. Sid’s lips twitched and she pulled them into a knowing smile, raising her right hand to meet the tip of the blade. Two more steps and he would pierce her through. She closed her eyes, drenching her body in magic, and when she opened them again she was unrecognizable. The electricity sparked over her skin; a consuming yellow cocoon that burnt at her edges. More gasps sounded in the flat and people shuffled out of the way. Ashlan made his final move. The tip of the blade flashed past her hand and was just about to pierce her skin when she snapped her fingers shut. The overhead lights flickered and the blade vibrated in Ashlan’s hand. He held strong, fighting the burn of the electricity exploding inside the weapon but she could see his grip was weakening. His fingers looked slick and shiny, covered in beads of sweat that threatened his position.

Heat rolled off the blade and it hummed with an electrical current so thick that the weapon shook his entire arm. Ashlan’s eyes widened and she smirked before uncurling her fingers and reaching for the blade’s power. She pulled it into her like she was swallowing a sharp breath. One minute the blade was full of power and the next it lay idly in Ashlan’s grip like a dead snake.

“Great, now I have to fix the stardamned thing.” Ashlan looked down at his weapon then back at Sid.

She smiled and turned her attention to the girl that was half hiding behind another Domer in the crowd. “Still think you don’t need magic?”

The girl shook her head and hid further behind the man in front of her.

“Good, so we agree.”

The girl nodded. “But what if we can’t find Serryl in time?”

“Then we have to be ready to fight on our own. Between me and Dee, we can take on a good number of Starblades but the rest of you will need every resource you have. Keep training with the older Freedom Runners as often as you can.”

“We switch locations every four hours. Train regularly in between,” Tann said.

“I can help too,” Ashlan added. “Teach you everything I’ve been taught so you know what to expect.”

“Thank you,” Tann said and she thought she noticed a glimmer of a smile in his eyes. The first one she’d seen in a long while.

“Great, me and Dee can help too,” she looked for the warrior in the crowd but he wasn’t in her sightline, though she could feel his energy somewhere in the flat. “Well, Dee can.”

“So we just run from place to place and learn to fight?” The girl pressed.

“You have a better idea?” When the girl didn’t answer, Sid looked to the rest of the crowd. “We’re not running. We are waiting for the right time to make our move and until that time comes, we need to get stronger. The queen will defend the ring with anyone she can command and that’s a lot more than what we have. So yes, we hide and learn to fight. We spread the word. We get more people. Then we move in and get the chipped free. Sound good?”

“Yes,” the girl said.

“Great, now let’s see how many of you can actually help us do that.”