Meadowcity (26 page)

Moments later, Caylee returned with a canister Sylvia sincerely hoped was burn cream.  The Healer sat on the cot and dabbed some of the cream over her burn, only intensifying Sylvia’s relief.

“You have to keep this clear—don’t cover it,” she said.

Sylvia nodded.  She had only been trying to keep it clear of the branches.

For a moment, it was peaceful. 

Then, a strangled cry sounded from far in the city.

Sylvia’s eyes snapped to the window, now completely dark.  Caylee stood, and Ember went to the door.

“What was that?” Sylvia whispered.

Ember shrugged, checking the hallway.

Sylvia turned, angling her feet to the floor.  There wasn’t any more time to sit around.  The cry was a harsh reminder of why they were here.

“No, Sylvia, you really shouldn’t go out there,” Caylee said, the heart going out of her words as she saw Sylvia’s expression.

“Do you have a crutch?” Sylvia asked tightly.

Caylee nodded.  “You should finish that,” she said, pointing to the water.

Sylvia gulped it down, as eager for the water as she was for whatever was keeping her head clear.

Caylee ducked out into the hallway and returned moments later with a wooden crutch, padded at the top.  She handed it to Sylvia and helped her tuck it under her arm.

Sylvia stood, bracing herself, but she felt a hundred times better than she had half an hour ago.  She needed to get outside.

Ember led the way down the hall, Luna strapped to her back, and Sylvia following on her crutch.  She reached down and felt for her knife in her boot.  Caylee softly padded after them.

Looking left and right down the empty corridors, Ember found the main door, holding it for Sylvia to hobble through.  She gave Caylee a look as the girl followed them out.

“You sure you want to come?”

The girl sniffed.  “I’m not going to lock myself back in that cupboard.”

Ember nodded.

It was eerie walking through the dark city.  The villas loomed up like the grassy hills they were, lit only by the rising quarter moon.

A dim light glowed by the gate, where they could hear shouting, getting louder as they neared.  Caylee took the lead and led them between villas towards the Citizen’s Hall.

They edged toward the perimeter path to get a view of the gate, the stone Hall looming up over the villas they hid behind.  They crept closer.

A crowd of people had gathered on the stone court in front of the Hall.  They had all circled around something they couldn’t see.

Sylvia took her crutch and hobbled forward, ducking behind the next villa.  The three of them watched from behind the mossy mound as someone was roughly brought to the center of the courtyard.

It was Gero.  A burly Scout threw him onto the stones, where he landed on his knees, keeping himself upright.  The crowd gasped.

Sylvia could see the Scouts positioned around the crowd, wolves and lions on tethers.  Nearly twenty stood at the gate, the explosive orbs in their hands.  There was no question of whether Meadowcity had a choice to obey.

Governor Greyling stepped out of the crowd and into the clearing, his long black cape brushing the stones, silver fur poking out of the collar.  Sylvia narrowed her eyes at the pale man.  He was the reason for all of this misery.

Sorin stepped up to Gero and slapped him across the face without preamble.  When Gero looked back up, they could see bright red marring his cheek.

“Gero!” a woman screamed.

The Governor’s wife Anna rushed forward, her long blue dress flowing behind her.  She ran to his side, as if she could protect him from Sorin.

But Skycity’s Governor seemed to be taken aback.

He stuttered.  “Savannah?”

Chapter Thirty Five

Anna knelt by Gero, wiping the blood from his face with her sleeve.  For some reason Sorin looked as if he had been struck as well.

The elegant woman stared up at Sorin, defiance obvious in her eyes even from where Sylvia and the others crouched.

“Well go on then,” she said, voice heavy with emotion.  “Don’t you have something to say?”

Sorin opened his mouth.  Closed it.  Opened it again.

“There is a threat,” he said, haltingly.  “There is a threat to Arcera, and we can only protect ourselves by uniting under one rule!”

Shouts came from the crowd—
what threat?

“We are not alone in Arcera,” he looked back and forth from Anna and the crowd.  “There is—there is a fifth city,” he said quickly.  “They sit on an island to the south.  Their technology far surpasses ours—and they hate us!” he shouted.

More yelling.  It was ridiculous.  No one had ever heard of a fifth city.  It had been hundreds of years, why wouldn’t they have noticed it?

“I’ve been there!” Sorin shouted, signaling the Scouts, who immediately brought the crowd to silence.

“They’ve hated us since the beginning!   They were rejected from Arcera, and now they want to take it out on us!  We need to protect the Cities!”

A lone voice from the crowd shouted, “By attacking us?  Riftcity?”

Too quickly, the voice was silenced.  A blow fell from a Scout’s raised club.

The courtyard fell silent.

Anna looked up at Sorin, disbelief strong on her face. 

“Sorin,” she pleaded.

Sorin’s face softened for the shortest of moments.

He opened his mouth to speak, but was cut short when the treewall behind them exploded into a ball of sound and flames.

*  *  *

Sylvia, Ember and Caylee ducked behind the villa, as trees and branches were thrown in all directions by the blast.  Just as suddenly as it happened, it was over, leaving a smoking hole in the treewall, wider than two villas stacked against each other.

Peeking her head out, Sylvia saw the edges of the wall still burning, but the Scouts at the gate had scattered.

Sonia
, Sylvia thought.  She must go find her.  With all of the chaos, no one would notice her in the crowd.

As she lifted her crutch, Ember grabbed her arm, piercing her with a sharp gaze.  The redhead helped her stand, and the two of them crept around the villa, telling Caylee to stay put.

Hobbling as fast as she could, Sylvia’s head was remarkably clear.  They gained the shelter of the Hall’s stone facade and headed for the clearing.  Sylvia searched for any sign of Sonia in the light blazing out of the Hall.

Another explosion, and everyone’s heads whipped towards the other side of the gate, where another hole had been blown.

Sylvia’s mouth hung wide.  Through all of the chaos, and screams, and Scouts running this way and that, no one had noticed another army creeping up on them.

Advancing through the gate was a rough crew of Riftcitizens, each with the same look of determination in their eye.  Directly in front marched Ven and Flint, armed to the teeth.

Sylvia and Ember watched wide mouthed as the newcomers poured in through the gate and began picking the Scouts out of the crowd and trying to disarm them.  They pressed in to the city, reaching further into the crowd as smoke from the second bomb rolled over the courtyard.

Gaining understanding, Sylvia leapt into motion, working the crutch to weave her way through the commotion.  Meadowcitizens ran this way and that, causing more confusion.  Two holes in the treewall gaped into the now dark forest, still smoldering.

Her heart pounded harder every moment longer it took. 

Lark and Adeline must have her
, she hoped. 
But what if something had happened to them?

Someone grabbed her arm, and she jerked around, coming face to face with Sorin himself.  His dark eyes leered at her from his pale face, the jet-black hair a disheveled mess, his cape askew.

She gasped as he gripped her arm tighter and suddenly she was thrown off balance as her crutch was kicked out from under her.  Eyes wide, she tried to gain her balance, but he yanked her forward, heading for the gate.

“You,” he spat, “are to blame for this.”

She could barely hear him over the crowd, her burnt leg still useless as he dragged her along.

“I could have brought us together,” he said, his grip so tight that her arm was becoming tingly.  “But you’ve made it difficult.”

Sylvia tried to reach out, tried to get out of his grip, but the tincture had made her weak.  She looked back at the Hall for Ember, but the redhead was busy corralling citizens into the Hall, getting them out of danger.

“Emb—” she tried to cry out.

Sorin’s other hand shot out and slapped over her mouth and nostrils, holding tight.

They had reached the gate, and Sylvia could see the trees twining together above her head, and the stars dotting the night sky.

She struggled to breathe as she began to run out of the air left in her lungs.  She shot her elbow out twice, missing.

“Ah, ah, not a chance.  You’re coming with me.  You’ll be a useful piece.”

The stars above were losing definition as she fought to stay conscious.  She flailed her head, but it did no good: Sorin’s clammy hand remained locked on.

The battle was raging inside the city, those left to fight in the courtyard would determine Meadowcity’s fate.  She heard a lone wolf howl nearby.

Her body fought for air. 
Meadowcity is fighting for its freedom.  We can’t lose!
she thought wildly, realizing what she had to do.

With all her will, she forced her burnt leg to come upright and hold all of her weight, shooting pain into that entire side of her body.  In that same instant she kicked out with her good leg, landing it solidly in Sorin’s gut.

Blown back, he floundered, cape tripping him as he threw out his arms to gain balance.

With blurry vision, Sylvia reached down and yanked the knife from her boot, and leapt at Sorin, knife extended.

Inches from his throat, she saw his eyes slide sideways to the city and the forest looking for an exit.

Behind Sorin, Sylvia could see the ruin of the hillside in the moonlight: Skycity’s demonstration. 

“Why?” Sylvia asked, knowing she would never have a better opportunity.  Surely he knew what she was asking.

He shook his head, eyes darting to the gate again.

“Beyond your imagination,” he said simply.

“Try,” she suggested, and then glanced at the gate herself, wondering what he was looking at.

The moment of inattention was all it took, and he pounced, jumping on her and reaching for the knife.

They fell to the ground in a heap, air puffing out of Sylvia in one go.  She cursed herself as she struggled; he had the advantage of weight and was using it to turn her knife towards her own throat.

His shadow loomed above her as her muscles strained against him.  The pain in her leg was back in full force as all of Caylee’s treatments wore off quickly from the adrenaline.

But her strength was coming back too as the tincture wore off, something Sorin wasn’t prepared for as she forced the knife up and out, throwing him off.

She tumbled away, coming to her knees and bracing herself, knowing she couldn’t stand properly anymore.

Sorin was getting up, brushing himself off.  He unclasped his cape, letting it fall to the ground.  He smirked at her, poised in a kneel, pointing her knife at him.

“You’ve cost Arcera,” he shook his head, glancing behind her.  “There are things—beyond your imagination, out there,” he pointed to the south, arm swinging.  “But we’ll have them.  We’ll have them, and Meadowcity will be
nothing
!” he shouted.

A sudden scuffing behind Sylvia forced her to turn, putting Sorin just in the corner of her vision.  Out of the gate poured around fifty Scouts and their beasts, retreating to the path and the woods.

Sylvia remained braced on her knees, blade guarding against Sorin.

Noting the retreat, Sorin shook his head at Sylvia sadly, and then turned away to the forest, joining the band of Scouts.  She watched as he clasped the silver fur collar of his cloak as they disappeared into the trees.