Silver City by Cliff McNish

Author:Cliff McNish [McNish, Cliff]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: First Avenue Editions
Published: 2015-08-01T05:00:00+00:00

TEN

i am not alone

THE ROAR

The Roar permitted Helen to flee.

“Follow her,” demanded one of her newborn. “Kill her.”

“No,” the Roar answered. “She discovered nothing from us, while we found out all we need. She may still be useful. You must learn when to kill at once and when to delay a kill.”

The newborn whose mistake had revealed them stayed silent. Normally the Roar would have automatically fed it to the other newborns after such a blunder, but, since only two remained, its punishment would have to be more subtle.

While she devised that punishment the Roar moved in an undeviating path towards the Earth. It was close now, but she remained cautious, camouflaging her skin to match the dark of space, and always looking out for the telltale glowing trails of the Protectors. Where were they? It had been so long since she last saw one of their fast-moving bodies.

In her youth she had hunted down many Protectors. The remembered satisfaction of that: to have trusted killers at your side, and come upon a lone Protector, and watch it fly in panic, and over countless years chase it down and butcher it. Indeed, no one had caught more than she. As the leader of an assassin-team, her sole purpose had been their killing.

The last one she had seen had been this world’s Protector.

She recalled when she first encountered it, rising like a silver shadow from the moon to confront her. The Roar was alone at the time, though still in peak physical condition: magnificently strong, well rested and newly fed, a battle-veteran with all her poisons intact.

Even so, she had hesitated to take on a Protector by herself.

To commence the battle the Protector had lifted up from the moon and extended its silver body like a shield across the Earth.

“I am not alone.”

That was the first thing it said to her, and a mistake. She put out her detections and knew the Protector was lying. That meant it was afraid. It had also waited in plain view on the moon, instead of hiding on the sunless side and launching an attack against her vulnerable rear-flukes. That meant it was inexperienced.

Knowing that, she roared once to steady herself—and attacked.

She and her enemy were well matched. The Roar had fought many Protectors before, but never on her own against an opponent of almost equal strength. Sometimes for centuries at a stretch they clenched one another fiercely. Other times they rested, and during those times she would whisper to the Protector, trying to weaken its resolve. It was young, this Protector; perhaps it could be convinced to flee if she injured it enough. No. It did not flee. And so, for ages more, she and the Protector fought: strength against strength, skill on skill, patience and fury.

It was Carnac, her offspring, who made the decisive difference.

During all the battle with the Protector the Roar had carried him inside her—the first of her newborn, and the best. And what a healthy thick offspring he had been when he burst out of her body at last! The Protector had known its fate.

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