New Dawn (Divine War Book 1) (11 page)

“Step aside, fools,” the Admiral drawled. “You're no match for him. Do none of you know who this man is?”

Kabi caught Lucia's eye, giving her an almost invisible wink and seeing her smile in return. Smart girl. She was staying well back from the action. Then he concentrated again, seeking out that place of mental focus, knowing that he was going to need the power soon.

“None of you recognise him?” the Admiral said in disgust. “In that case, gentlemen, allow me to introduce to you Archangel Scorpio.”

“Now, there's a name I haven't heard for a long time,” Kabi said, casually swinging the crystal sword around and burying its point in the deck so that he could lean on its hilt. “And how would it be, dear Admiral, that you know this name?” He rested on his sword, patiently awaiting an answer, his body relaxed, his mind scrabbling to focus on the power.

“I know many things,” the Admiral said airily. “I also happen to know that you are the only Archangel left.”

Hmmm,
thought Kabi. So, the Admiral didn't know quite as much as he thought. Interesting. He watched impassively as the stout man turned and reached up to the weapon rack on the wall behind him, selecting a trident before turning back.

“And I've been looking for you for a long time. Fifteen years, give or take.” The Admiral grinned, a smile full of frozen promise, and weighed the trident in his hand. “And finally it is time to regain my honour.”

Slowly, Kabi raised his sword. The Admiral's grin got only larger as he hefted his trident, striking the butt of it on the ground. As he did so, the three prongs ignited in deep blue fire. Kabi shook his head slightly, and the Admiral laughed.

*

Despite his containment, Maicee was actually very impressed with the medical bay on the
Freedom
. There was everything a doctor or a surgeon could possibly need, including a small, sterile operating theatre.
Not bad for a pirate ship,
he thought. He looked at the young woman on the bed. Not that he'd be needing an operating theatre.

“She's fine,” he told Falorni, completing his examination of Lean, the ship's engineer. “A few lacerations, a couple of bruises, nothing that a hot shower won't cure. No lasting damage that I can see.”

Lean's eyelids began to flicker, and Falorni used the cool cloth that she'd been wiping the engineer's limbs down with to soothe her forehead. Lean groaned.

“My head...”

Falorni steadied the girl, who was beginning to thrash around, unsure of what was going on. “Stay calm,” she said.

“Where am I? What happened?” Lean said, eyes opening.

She struggled and tried to sit up, but Falorni resisted her efforts. “It's okay. You're fine, Lean. It's me, Falorni.” She waited a moment until the girl understood who was speaking to her and calmed a little. “We found you unconscious in the engine room. Do you remember what happened?”

Lean groaned again. “No... wait, yes... I was working. Checking the engine stats. The next thing I knew, the engine exploded, just out of nowhere. I remember being thrown backwards, then black. Nothing else.”

Falorni nodded. “You were unconscious for a while, but you're going to be perfectly fine. Do you remember seeing anyone else around the engine room before the explosion?”

The young engineer shook her head. “No, no, I don't think so.”

Maicee saw a small flicker in the corner of her eye.
Maybe,
he thought,
she remembers more than she’s saying.
He was about to ask her, and to introduce himself, when the com system beeped.

“ABDS deactivated. Return to bridge,” Bettie's voice said.

Falorni pulled a blanket up over Lean. “You just stay here. I'll come check on you in a little while. Try and get a little sleep if you can.”

She stroked the girl's forehead one more time, then nodded at Maicee.

“Let's go,” she said.

The two left the medical bay and hurried back to the bridge. A few minutes later, when she was sure that all was clear and she wouldn't be noticed, Lean too got up. She clung onto the side of the bed as her head spun for a moment, then cleared. Then she left the medical bay.

*

Sword and trident clashed, spilling blue and gold sparks into the air. When it came to combat, both Kabi and the Admiral were well trained. Sweat beaded across their brows as each fought to gain the upper hand. The remaining soldiers of the
Argoni
lined the sides of the bridge, watching as their commander battled in a way they'd never encountered before. None made a move to step into the melee.

Circling defensively, both men breathed heavily. Kabi was thinking that it was about time to end all this. The combination of fighting physically whilst still mentally trying to hold on to the power was getting exhausting. The Admiral caught the glimpse of fatigue in the other man's eyes and laughed.

“It has been some time since I fought someone of your calibre,” he said, still circling, his eyes never leaving Kabi's. “This has been fun, my old foe. But the sands of time are rapidly running out. You must forgive me.” With this, he once more banged his trident on the deck, and the flames spouted higher and burned brighter.

“Agreed,” Kabi said calmly. “Let us end this here.”

Squinting in the bright light of the flames and bringing his left hand in front of him, he focussed a sharp burst of the power and fired three small crystal shards at the Admiral. Another peal of laughter as the Admiral stepped elegantly to one side, causing all three shards to fly over his shoulder and embed themselves into the wall of the bridge. He swung the trident to block Kabi's incoming attack and sighed theatrically.

“You underestimate me, Scorpio,” he said. “After all, I did singlehandedly kill Aquarius. Why should I not do the same to you?” He paused, moving his hand further up the rod of the trident. “Oh my, how could I forget? She was your sister, wasn't she? You do have my apologies, dear Scorpio.” He jabbed forward with the trident.

Kabi's eyes burned even brighter than the fires of the trident as he gritted his teeth. “Your blood will be mine,” he said, cursing.

“I think not. I think you'll be joining your sister in hell sooner than you might have planned,” riposted the Admiral.

The trident slashed forwards again, burning a deep hole in the deck, and Kabi only just managed to leap aside. The flames seared a sharp pain through his right shoulder. Lucia gasped when she saw blood run down his arm, staining the shining handle of his sword.

“You have no idea just how much I hate you,” said the Admiral, pulling his weapon back for another blow. “Or how powerful a motivator hatred can be. I will destroy you.”

Their weapons locked again, Kabi feeling the burning of his muscles as he forced his sword to push the trident down. “It seems that I have far more reason to kill you than you have to kill me,” he said equably, not letting his voice betray his emotions. “You killed my sister, after all.”

The trident dropped down, releasing itself from the sword, before jumping straight up again, an obvious feint and one that Kabi easily blocked.

“You don't remember, do you?” the Admiral said. His face was red, sweat streaming down his cheeks, stinging his eyes. “You don't remember at all.”

“Why would I remember one as insignificant as you?” Kabi asked quietly. If he played his cards right, he might get the Admiral to have a heart attack before he got stabbed with that damn trident.

“Fifteen years ago, I was tasked with killing you,” hissed the Admiral. “And you disappeared off the face of Archeonis. And because I could not fulfil my mission, the Supreme Emperor stripped me of my rightful title. That of Magi Lord. I have suffered fifteen years of shame and humiliation. But now, now I shall regain what was always mine. I shall redeem myself.”

Kabi shrugged as if this hardly mattered to him, though this new information made sense to him and went a long way to explaining how the Admiral knew who he was. He was rewarded with a blaze of uncontrolled anger in the eyes of the Admiral, who raised his trident and lunged. Kabi parried, but the flames of the trident burned a small dent into his crystal sword.
Fine,
he thought. Enough was enough. Extending his left hand, he focussed the power until a small, transparent ball appeared, growing larger and flatter until it formed an impenetrable shield.

The shield blocked the Admiral's attacks, the heat of the trident having no effect whatsoever on it. Kabi dropped his sword and allowed the shield to protect him as the Admiral's frustrations grew, his attacks became frenzied, his footwork shoddy.
The battle is coming to an end,
Kabi thought with satisfaction. He waited for a particularly strong trident thrust and then allowed the shield to fade for a split second before renewing his focus. The result of this was that the trident was now captured in the shield itself, the Admiral unable to pull it free. That sort of manipulation took intense focus, and Kabi was very pleased with himself. Not so pleased, however, that he forgot his aim.

Pulling a hand back, he pushed the power down his arm and into his fist, punching the full force of everything he had down into the Admiral's chest. The man's torso ruptured open, wide enough that Kabi could see his heart still desperately beating, pumping blood around a body that could no longer contain it. The Admiral's eyes widened, and he choked, trickles of blood coming from his mouth.

“No...” he groaned. But seeming to realise what was happening, he raised his right hand, and his clouded eyes cleared for a moment. “You shall die with me!”

A fireball erupted from his hand, aimed directly at Kabi, but the Admiral didn't live to see the consequences of his actions. His eyes closed even as the fire ball left his palm. He died smiling, believing that he had taken his enemy to the grave with him.

The fireball was right on target. To give the Admiral his due, he was a good shot. Slowly, even lazily, Kabi opened his hand; and as the fireball grew closer, he allowed the power to extend out of him, wrapping the fire in a safe cocoon of transparent energy that suffocated the flames and then evaporated.

Aware that all was not going to plan, the soldiers of the
Argoni
had fled as they saw their captain sinking towards the deck. And when the fireball was gone, Kabi and Lucia were left alone. The man smiled at the young woman, who was still kneeling on the deck.

“You can come in now,” Kabi said over his shoulder. “I told you I'd keep him safe,” he told Lucia as Benho entered the bridge from where he'd been waiting behind the door.

The young doctor, slightly pale from the anxiety of what he'd just seen, bent to cut through Lucia's restraints. Lucia rubbed her wrists, then accepted Benho's help to rise to a standing position.

Regarding the body of the Admiral and unfazed by his open chest, Lucia shook her head. “Your skills continue to impress me, KabiOnn,” she said. “Killing a Magi Lord is quite something. Even an ex-Magi Lord.”

Kabi sighed before answering: “All Magi Lords are my kin. There is no pleasure in killing my own nephew.”

*

The small crew stood to attention as their captain entered the bridge. Even a pale Lean was on deck. Benho gallantly escorted Lucia to the captain's chair, where she sank heavily down and let the soft cushions of the seat embrace her. She was glad to be back on her own ship, but now she was here, she had to deal with a very pressing matter. No matter which way she looked at things, she could come up with no other solution than that someone on board had betrayed them.

Stepping forward, Bettie reported on the condition of the ship and what had transpired during the captain's absence. Lucia nodded, understanding the seriousness of what had happened, but the weight of betrayal overrode the ship's engineering problems.

“Thank you,” she said curtly as Bettie finished.

The first officer stepped back, and Lucia let her eyes rove over her crew. “Our mission was a failure. We walked into a trap. We were ambushed. And that can mean only one thing. We were expected.” Eyes darting back and forth, carefully looking for a reaction, she said: “Someone amongst us is a traitor.”

There was a collective gasp of shock from all but one of the crew. Lucia allowed her eyes to settle on the woman who was staring at her with hatred. Slowly, the captain pulled her dagger from her belt and aimed its point at the woman's throat.

“Why did you betray us?” she asked softly.

Lean's eyes glittered, and Lucia saw no fear, just pure and unadulterated hate.

“To avenge my father,” the ship's engineer said, spitting out the words.

“Your father?” Lucia said, raising an eyebrow.

“Five years ago, you killed my father when you boarded this ship.” Lean's voice was as hard as steel, and Lucia heard truth in every word she spoke.

“And who exactly was your father?” Lucia asked, dagger still extended and ready to throw, her manner almost conversational.

Lean gritted her teeth, her jaw pushing out as she recounted her story, the words dripping with anger. “My father was Jason O'Conule, chief engineer of the battle cruiser
Bravery
. The Admiral informed me that you killed everyone on board when you took the ship. This ship.”

Lucia slumped back into her chair, letting her knife drop. “Because the
Bravery
went on to become the
Freedom
. This ship.” She nodded wearily.

The ship's engineer was surprised that her captain had not denied what she was being told. She'd expected more of a fight out of the woman. For a moment, her certainty wavered, but then she collected herself, reminding herself that this woman had killed her father.

The captain bit her lip and blinked twice before continuing. “I did not kill your father.”

Lean looked about to interrupt, and Lucia held up a hand.

“But he did die because of me,” she continued. “Your father was the one who gave me the
Freedom
. He was my agent on board. He provided me with information, and when the time came, he sabotaged the ship by disabling its engines. With his help we were able to easily take the vessel.”

Again she blinked, and the crew watched her. It was rare to see their captain exhibit much emotion. Lean too was still, patiently waiting for further explanation but knowing deep in her stomach that she'd made a terrible, terrible mistake.