The Blood-Dimmed Tide by Michael R. Johnston

Author:Michael R. Johnston
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Flame Tree Publishing
Published: 2019-12-16T14:49:22+00:00

Chapter Ten

I woke up in the cabin I’d built – well, I’d programmed the machines that built it – and walked outside and down the path to the lake. Liam and I had discovered this place early in the colony’s existence, and I’d decided it was going to be our home. We’d built the cabin and stocked it, but we didn’t spend much time here, as it was several hours’ flight away from Landing, and we had jobs to do there. When the Rising had failed, Liam had brought me here to rest and recuperate. But I hadn’t left for months now. In the aftermath of the Rising’s failure, I’d assumed that I’d come back to the fight eventually. I told Liam I needed a few weeks.

Weeks became months. In that time, the Zhen had re-established their control over the planet quickly, from the orbital surveillance and strike satellites to their garrison in Landing. They’d found the perfect way to keep us down: by helping us rebuild the city center and bringing in much-needed supplies.

Liam continued to work back in Landing, and joined me every few days, but I was done fighting. The Zhen had destroyed us, and they held all the cards now. Injala had tried to talk me into fighting again, but when she failed, she left me, simply walking off one day. I had no idea where she was, now.

As I sat in the chair I’d placed under a tree on the lakeshore, I noticed a small animal at the water’s edge, drinking. I was watching it when I heard the drone of a shuttle approaching. The little creature bolted for some nearby foliage, and I stood and watched the shuttle come in on its antigrav and settle softly to the ground in the landing area we’d ringed with stones.

I smiled and approached as the door opened and Liam stepped out, followed by Bailey and Kiri. My smile got even wider, and I gave them each a hug. “Anyone hungry?” I said.

“I am always hungry, you know that,” Liam said. Bailey and Kiri both indicated they were hungry. I turned and led them to the cabin, Kiri and Liam taking up station on either side of me. “How’s Landing?” I asked Kiri.

“I haven’t been there in a couple of months,” she said. “Once the Zhen pushed us all out to the villages, there wasn’t much point. I’ve been working with some guys in Hotty.”

“Wait, what?”

“Well, we call it ‘Hotty’, but officially it’s named ‘Hotcrap’.”

“Really?”

“Yep. The villages were settled by people like you. What can I say? It’s hot, it’s crappy.” She waved a hand. “At any rate, we’re trying to find a way to re-enable the stealth protocols so we can use them against the Zhen.” She sat at the table.

“Any luck?” I asked, as I began to prepare a tray of various foods from the pantry.

“No,” she said. “Nothing we’ve tried has worked.” She looked troubled.

“What happened?” I asked.

She took a deep breath. “We lost someone.”

I turned slowly toward her.

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