Chronicles of the Uprising (Trilogy 1): Trilogy 1 (38 page)

Chapter 14

Two Otherkin were standing guard outside of the command tent. Mira sized them up as she approached with Lucian. Not particularly intimidating, they were both tall and thin, and looked like a good gust of wind would blow them over, but she wasn’t going to let that fool her. Knowing now that they all possessed unique abilities put her on alert.

“Step aside; I am going inside,” she commanded as she approached.

Her jaw almost hit the ground when they stood to the side and waved her to the open flap on the tent. “They’ve been waiting on you.”

Mira wanted to throw a snippy comment their way, but she wasn’t given the option. For once, they were doing exactly what she wanted. Something was wrong.

Eyeing them narrowly as she entered the tent, Mira wondered exactly was going on. Not as lavish as their conference room back in Caldera, the command tent looked quite comfy. All of the Council members sat on large cushions in a circle.

“…the dam is under our control.” Alec was speaking, and seemed overly pleased with himself. “The shifters are on patrol, and we’ve shut down all water and power to the city.”

“Well, that’s one way to kick a hornets’ nest.” Mira spoke loudly enough to grab the attention of everyone in the room.

Alec, sitting closest to the entrance, turned his eyes on her. His lips stretched wide into a smile that made him look more troll than man. She wondered if trolls were part of the Otherkin, or just some pretend creature. “Mira… Just the vampire we were waiting on. When can your troops be ready to fight?”

She looked away, focusing on the canvas walls of the tent, remembering his handy little gift for meddling with people’s minds. “You’ll have to ask them. They are not my troops. They are free vampires.”

“Who trust you and look up to you.” Alec was really laying it on thick. His normal undertones of animosity were gone.

She had to suppress a laugh. “You’re joking, right?”

“They owe you allegiance.”

“They owe nothing to anybody. They’ve been paying for years. You want fighters, you ask them… nicely.” She wasn’t going to let him sweet talk her, and made damn sure to avoid eye contact with him to ensure there was no way he could meddle.

Michael stood and walked over to Mira. “We hoped you would act as a liaison. They know you. Come, join us here and let’s discuss.”  He pointed to a vacant cushion on the ground near where he sat.

Mira wasn’t in the ‘sitting and chatting kum ba yah’ mood. She needed to make her point and move on. Standing firm in her spot, she addressed the group. “Why must we fight? Surely there’s a way to find peace without more bloodshed. Michael, was it not you who said that all you wanted was an end to the hostility between our two groups?”

Michael nodded. “Yes, but to end the hostility we must snip out the elements that are feeding the lies about our kind.”

“Don’t sugar coat. There is no ‘snipping’ here.” Emotion colored her voice more than she had wanted it to. “You are planning war. You know who fights wars? The grunts. People who have no real opinion but who are told when and where to fight for their leaders. Are you going to stand next to your warriors and risk death on the battlefield?”

“We’ll have no choice. By tomorrow they’ll seek us out.” Alec’s smile turned truly wicked. For the first time she saw what could only be the demon inside of the man.

Eyes wide with fear of the unknown, Mira was almost afraid to ask. “What have you done?”

“We’ve forced their hand.”

Roseanna, Alec’s Otherkin partner, opened her mouth to speak, but before the words could escape her lips, Alec hushed her with a look. Mira had noticed on quite a few occasions that the female had been all but mute in their gatherings; something she would have to focus on later. Alec’s revelation had a lump of fear forming in her chest.

“How exactly have you forced their hand?” she asked tentatively.

“Without power and water, humans cannot live. They’ll either flee their city or meet us head on to reclaim what they’ve lost. And we will be ready either way to take the city.”

Mira tried to force down the lump. They had riled up the humans, that was for sure. But had they considered the fallout? “You’ll not have your vampire warriors if they decided to fight you during the day.”

“Vampires can fight inside.” Alec pointed down to a map lying on the ground in the center of their circle. Next to that was a set of blueprints. Niko and Katerina were both busily poring over the layout, talking amongst themselves. They glanced up and nodded at Mira, and then immediately went back to the blueprints.

“As you have probably guessed, our shifters are plotting the best defense of the outside, while you and your kind will guard the inside. If the humans should meet us during daylight, they will still be defeated. “

Fighting indoors, in an enclosed environment. That was just asking for trouble; but if the sun was out, there was nothing else to do. What a terrible plan.

“And what of the Magistrate?” she asked, wondering what more terrible ideas they had in store.

Now it was Natasha’s turn to respond. “Don’t concern yourself with him. He’ll be given the same treatment that he gave to our kind. Justice will be dealt.” Fangs glistening with hunger, she looked more than eager to dole out that punishment.

“You mean revenge.” If anyone was going to exact revenge, it really should have been Mira and her vampire brethren. They had been the ones to suffer at his hands. But that was an argument for a different day.

“Call it what you will.”

“We’ll come back to that. His punishment should really be something public, and not just for the sake of my brothers in arms, but for the humans too.”

“You do what you do best – fight. Let the Council handle the important matters.”

It was all she could do to bite her tongue and not his head off for a comment like that. Of all the Otherkin, Alec rubbed her the wrong way most of all. She sensed the hatred was equal between them both. Unlikely allies for the present; but for how long, she wondered?

The Magistrate issue would have to be dealt with later, and she made a mental note to come back to it if they survived the next battle, but the war that was about to begin had to take precedence. “I will fight. Not for you, though,” she sneered at Alec, but made sure not to maintain eye contact. “And my kin will fight too… because you have forced their hand. They will do it for survival. I did not free them so they could be slaves to different masters.”

Natasha held up a perfectly manicured finger. “Ah, but Mira, they are fighting for their freedom. That is far from being forced to kill each other in the arena.”

“Only someone who has never been there would say that.” She doubted the pampered vampire had ever fought more than a bad hair day in her immortal life.

Sirens went off outside. A moment later, a loud blast shook the tent they were standing in.

“Well, you were right about one thing: they came looking,” Mira muttered, and turned for the exit.

Outside, sirens blared. The enemy was close. Scurrying people darted in and out of the camp, some frantically grasping at weapons and others looking as if they were hoping for a safe place to hide. An uneasy feeling tiptoed up Mira’s spine, settling at the base of her neck with a nagging ache. She took a deep breath. No matter what she wanted, peace was always one more battle away.

There was no time for moral objections. Mira sprinted down towards the tents her comrades had been assigned.

“Find a weapon, boys. Time for a fight,” she said, entering the tent with as much arrogant importance as she could muster.

“I’m assuming the sirens mean we have company.” George’s tone failed to hide the anguish behind his eyes.

“We’re not done fighting for our freedom. One last battle awaits.” Mira hated having to say the words. Lies, all lies. She knew she’d just traded in one master for another. But, in order to survive to fight the political battle another day, she had to muster her people to fight the physical battle this night.

Expecting to hear the groans and complaints from the weary warriors, she was shocked when one by one, those who were in the tent rose, ready to fight.

Her chest swelled with pride. Though no one said it, they respected her and would follow her into battle without question. She was their leader.

More vampires poured into the tent as the sirens continued, looking for answers and instructions. Mira gave the same speech to them.

All except Tegan. He scoffed at her request to take up arms. “I didn’t sign up for any of this.”

“None of us did. We’ve all been screwed. Is that what you wanted to hear?”

“At least you admit it.”

“Much good it does. We still have to fight if we want to have our freedom.”

“Always one more fight…”

“Yeah. And whining about it like a baby doesn’t change that fact. Find whatever motivation you need – revenge, whatever – and get out there and defend this camp.”

A loud boom shook the ground, followed by painful cries. It was enough to snap both warriors to attention. Tegan picked up his weapon. “This isn’t over between us. I’m not your pawn, you hear me?”

“Never said you were. Fight me later. But now, we have a job to do. Get out there and fight as if your life depends on it… Because it just might. I’ll be right behind you.” She’d join the fight soon enough, but needed to find her humans first.

“Not good enough.” Tegan snatched her hand as she was leaving the tent. “You fight with us.”

“Release me. I’ll be there in a moment. I just need to check…”

“If you want these men to follow you to the grave, then show them what kind of leader you are.”

“Last warning. Release my arm before I pull yours from the socket and beat you bloody with it.”

“Let her go, man. We have a fight at our door.” George stood tall and closed in.

“I just want the human-lover to show us who is most important to her. I know she’s running off to check on that Elite.”

Mira snarled and threw her arm back, twisting out of Tegan’s grip. Before he could react, she pulled his arm up behind his back. “You know what’s important to me? Peace. I’m sick of fighting: you, humans, everyone! You want to be a petty little crybaby about this, then leave. No one wants you here. Otherwise, get out there and help us win this stupid war. I’ll be right there behind you all.”

Tegan grunted. Mira took that as his acquiescence and released him. She turned to George. “I promise, I’ll be right behind you. I just need to make sure Lucian is safe.”

“I understand. Go.” George, always level-headed; she knew he truly did understand.

Mira bolted out of the tent, but not before she heard Tegan’s grumble of “Human-lover” under his breath.

She made a mental note to make him pay for that comment later.

Though Lucian had been close behind her when she went to the command tent, she had not seen him since she’d gone inside.

There had to be at least a hundred tents in their encampment. He could be anywhere, even out fighting. Assuming, though, that he’d not gone too far, Mira headed back toward the command tent. Like the rush of flooding waters, everyone in the camp was heading out to meet the battle head on, but she fought the current.

Behind the command tent, two Otherkin stood guard over a smaller tent. Everyone else in the camp was rushing away; why weren’t they?

Intuition told her that she’d find him there, so she walked straight up to the taller of the two guards. “I need to go inside.”