Rise of the Resistance (War for Orion Trilogy Book Two) (19 page)

He stepped off the body and wiped the bodily
fluids of the creature off of the blade. The orange drops began to
pound the grey dirt and the winds picked up, creating a howling in
the canyon. He quickly ran over to the small cave he’d seen before
the monster attacked and got inside for cover. Quickly, he looked
around to see if there was anything else in here with him, but as
far as he could see he was alone. Searing pain began to throb in
his head and he grabbed it with both hands before falling over on
his. His throat began to constrict and he clawed at it desperately,
trying to get as much air in his lungs as he could. The life was
slowly draining from his body and he looked around frantically,
hoping something could save him.

He stumbled out of the cave and fell hardly
to the wet ground. The orange liquid pounded on him, but the only
thing he could hear were his gasps for breath and his slowing
heartbeat. Once his vision began to blur, it sunk in. Death had
finally found him. Even with all of his training, nothing had
prepared him for surviving in an environment that could kill with
ease. It was unforgiving and he’d made the mistake of thinking he
was stronger and smarter than he really was.

He turned over and looked up at the orange
liquid pounding down on him. Several seconds later, he felt the
pounding of the liquid seize. He tried to clear his vision to see
why it had stopped, and made out a dark figure standing above him.
Donnchadh tried to push himself up, but his body failed him and he
collapsed back to the ground. The figure got closer to him and
reached a hand towards him right as he blacked out.

Pyrrhus landed on Ares and was glad to see
things seemed to have calmed down some since his first visit. Races
were going from place to place as if it was any other day, and if
he wasn't leading the rebellion, he wouldn’t even suspect what was
coming. He left the spaceport and waved down a cruiser to take him
to the Capitol building where he’d discuss recent events. The
driver got him to the building within minutes and he went straight
to the Debate Hall. A calmness was in the room as he entered. Every
race was at a station, busy working with a group, and the noise was
kept to a low level. He walked around until he found the Prime
Minister watching one of the video feeds of Hera.

“I've established bases on Hermes and
Gaea.”

“Just those two?” Prime Minister Gidon
asked. “I thought you weren't coming back until you had a few on
every planet.”

Pyrrhus shook his head. “I didn't think so
either, but I ran into Moran Borislav on Gaea.”

“The guy that works for the Queen?”

“Yes. Part of the GSOU unit,” he nodded. “He
already had thousands of survivors under his protection and said he
had men ready to set up bases elsewhere in Orion. He seemed to have
everything planned out before my arrival.”

“Doesn't surprise me.” Gidon said. “The
Queen’s men are always thinking ahead and are natural leaders. I
presume if you hadn't run into him and told him what we were doing,
he would've started his own rebellion. What about Hermes? Who’d you
put in charge there?”

“A lady named Zarah.”

“Zarah?” Gidon repeated. “Should I know of
her? The name doesn’t sound familiar.”

Pyrrhus shook his head. “No. I didn't even
know her name until she introduced herself.”

“Military?” Gidon asked.

“Just a regular human woman,” Pyrrhus
answered. “She was on Gaea when the crodillians attacked and left
her home to go to Hermes. She lost her whole family and wanted to
lead a rebellion so that was the planet she chose.”

“And the races of Hermes just picked up and
followed her?” Gidon asked surprised. “They followed some random
woman they'd never seen or heard of?”

“She's a strong woman, Gidon. She had a
whole group around her when I arrived. On top of that, she had the
city ready to attack in case of an invasion. They were very well
organized considering she had few resources and no military
experience.”

“Just a random woman did all of this?” Gidon
said aloud, stunned. “Do you think she'll turn out to be good in
her new position?”

“Of course!” Pyrrhus replied. “I wouldn't
have put her in charge otherwise. There's just something about her,
an aura, she gives people hope and they follow her without
question.”

“That's what we need,” Gidon said. “Leaders
who give the races hope of ultimate victory.”

“She's definitely giving it to them. I have
no doubt she'll lead them to victory either. The woman was made for
this role.”

“I can't' wait to meet her,” Gidon smiled
and then let out a sigh. “Did you see that the crodillians took
over Ovrea?”

“Yeah, I heard about it on the way back,” he
answered. “Ovrea would’ve never put up much of a fight, even
without the Queen's message. There's really not enough races there
to put up any type of resistance.”

“When do you think they'll be here? It can’t
be much longer.”

“Don't know,” Pyrrhus shrugged. “My guess
would be we’ll be last since the quierleons are the most likely
race to rebel. Their human leader will know that and she’ll
wait.”

“I would think the opposite, but you’re
probably right. Who knows what goes through that twisted woman’s
mind.”

“I can’t even imagine,” Pyrrhus shook his
head in disgust. “How could a human work for those things knowing
what they have planned?”

“Her mind has to be clouded with hatred.
There’s no other way she'd destroy her home like this.”

“Are the other leaders here keeping track of
her movements?”

“Yes,” Gidon answered. “More so than any of
the crodillians. She’s still at Ovrea, though it appears that
they'll be moving on to the next planet soon. We'll know which
planet they're at next the second they arrive there.”

“Do you mind if I update the leaders on my
progress?” He asked. “Let them know what is being set up and
such?”

“Go ahead,” Gidon pushed him towards the
stage. “I'm sure they'd all love to hear some good news for a
change.”

Pyrrhus walked up to the stage and stood in
front of all the races who still hadn't even noticed him in the
room yet. Gidon handed him a microphone and he tapped it a couple
times to get the attention of the leaders in the room. A high
pitched screech echoed in the room and they slowly looked up from
their work, straightening when they saw who stood before them.

“I've come back from my travels earlier than
I expected,” he told them. “I found two great leaders for Hermes
and Gaea and I’ve promoted them to General's. The one on Hermes is
a woman named Zarah, she has no military experience whatsoever, so
I'm going to assign some of you to help her out. Though she has no
military experience, she has leadership skills like nothing I’ve
ever witnessed. She’s one of rebels, her entire family was killed
on Gaea and after that, she made her whole purpose to lead a
rebellion. There is no shred of doubt in my mind she’s the one to
lead them to victory,” he looked around the room briefly. “I put a
man named Moran in charge of the base at Gaea and he’s the reason
that I'm back so soon. I believe some in this room know him because
he was waiting for my arrival. He offered to help me set up bases
by sending men he knows well to do it in my place. Though I was
reluctant at first, I know he’s right and that I should be here
planning for the rebellion,” Pyrrhus took in a deep breath. “I know
that you may be losing hope right now, keeping up with every detail
that's going on in Orion, but I'm here to tell you, don't. We’re
going to win this war. I've seen it in the eyes of Zarah, Moran,
and all the survivors that’ve rallied around them. This war isn't
lost yet, it’s still far from over. Keep eyes on the crodillians
and let me know
immediately
if they’ve come to Ares. The
rebellion bases will be finished being established soon, but the
crodillians may still strike first. I believe that we’ll deliver
the first blow, but I need you to keep me updated.”

Pyrrhus walked off of the stage and was
drowned in a wave of clapping and hollering. They hadn't had much
to cheer about recently, but he’d finally given them something to
look forward to. A slight bit of hope. He walked to Gidon and
headed for the door.

“I'm going to call the Council and tell them
I've finished. I want to hear what they want to do.”

Gidon nodded and Pyrrhus left the room that
was still erupting with cheers. He closed the door to the Debate
Hall and pulled out his comlink.

Aldrick picked up. “Have you finished
already, Pyrrhus?”

“I have,” he answered. “I’ve set up two
strong bases on Hermes and Gaea. You’ll get to know the leaders
very well in the coming days. They will keep us all updated on
their progress.”

“Just those two?” He interrupted. “I thought
there’d be many more than that.”

“I’ve had help with the others,” he said.
“Moran Borislav had men ready to go to the remaining planets to set
up bases. He wanted me here, setting up battle plans.”

“Excellent!” Aldrick beamed. “We’ve all come
to the agreement that you're in complete control of everything. You
don’t need to ask us permission about your strategy, all you have
to do is run it by us. We’ll give suggestions, concerns, and
anything else that comes to mind, but you’re the man in
charge.”

“Me?” Pyrrhus asked stunned. “But I thought
you were going to make final decisions.”

“We were,” Aldrick nodded. “But after much
discussion, you’re the only one who has faced the crodillians.
You’re the one who’s committed his life to understanding war and
know better than any about what to do. You should be the one making
decisions in these times, not us. It’s time to put your training
into action.”

“I still don't know very much about the
crodillians, not as much as I would like to anyway. Have you heard
back from Anlon yet?”

“No,” Aldrick shook his head. “We’ve heard
nothing, but don't doubt the boy, the Princess, and their friends.
They’ll report back soon. Adira put a lot of trust in that boy for
a reason.”

“Ovrea was just taken over. Could something
have happened to them there?”

“There’s a possibility,” Aldrick nodded.
“But I don't think it's very likely. The crodillians held up their
end of the promise and took it over peacefully. It may be that
Anlon and the Princess are just waiting for them to leave before
they come back.”

“I hope so,” Pyrrhus said. “If the Elders
were able to give them anything, I sure need it right now. Battle
plans are going to hinge on our knowledge of the enemy.”

“Do you have a plan in mind?” Aldrick asked.
“Any ideas of how to lead the rebellions on each planet?”

Pyrrhus let out a deep breath. “I have an
idea at the moment, but I'm going to sit down and put things
together. I’d like to hear from Anlon first, but I'll start as soon
as I'm done speaking with you.”

“Then don't let me hold you,” Aldrick
replied. “Get your rebellion ready. Find out what you want to do
and how you're going to do it. Whatever you decide, we’ll back up.
You're in charge of this rebellion now, Pyrrhus. I know you'll lead
us to victory.”

Pyrrhus stared at the comlink as the image
of Aldrick flickered off. He hadn't seen this coming at all. He was
just supposed to be in charge of leading the ships, not the entire
rebellion itself. There was no telling how others would respond
after finding out he’d abandoned his crew, and he knew they'd all
find out soon if they didn’t already know. It still hurt him that
he’d left his men, but if he hadn't, this rebellion wouldn't be
happening. He told himself he’d done the right thing and the
Council insisted he had too. If they had thought it was the wrong
decision, they wouldn't have put him in charge. He and his rebels
would wipe out all of the crodillians, he just needed to sit down
and figure out how exactly they were going to do it.

Kirill followed Kellagh off his ship and
down the marble halls of the Queen's Palace. A lot had changed
since the last time he’d been here, but that was mostly the blood
spattered on the walls and char marks from weapon fire. He followed
Kellagh silently to the reception room where a crodillian was
sitting in the middle surrounded by screens. As they moved toward
tall creature with dark green skin, Kirill made out the images to
be of Gaea. Kellagh stopped behind the leader and motioned for
Kirill to stop with his hand.

“I’ve brought you back Kirill,” Kellagh
said.

The crodillian turned around and looked at
him with his red eyes. “Why didn't Donnchadh bring back Kirill,
Kellagh? What did you do to him?”

“I did nothing to him,” Kellagh backed up a
step. “I’ll let you talk to Kirill about it.”

Kirill stepped forward with a smile. “He was
planning to attack you and then start a rebellion.”