The Fallen Prince by Amalie Howard

Author:Amalie Howard
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Sky Pony Press
Published: 2016-02-23T05:00:00+00:00

15

THE ULTIMATE WEAPON

THE ONE WITH the crown of scarlet spines jerks his head at me and then down to my blades. He’s the leader. I can’t quite work out if they’re friendly or if this is part of some war ritual before they try to take us down.

“Don’t you dare drop those swords,” Bass hisses, hefting his staff even higher.

“I wasn’t going to.”

The man speaks a guttural language, gesticulating at us and at the weapons in our hands. I’m very aware of the row of sharpened teeth in his mouth. If there’s one thing I’ve learned about surviving in this world, it’s that things with pointy teeth tend to be carnivores. These natives are hunters, and they don’t want to kill us. They want to eat us. Out here, it’s slim pickings. I’m pretty sure we’re like a free-for-all banquet.

“What’s he saying?” Bass whispers.

“Hang on.”

The man gestures again, repeating his sentence. Running the language through my database, I find a match that performs an adequate translation. It’s some sort of pig-Latin dialect. “I think he wants to know who we are and where we’re going,” I say. “Sauer, what do you want me to tell him?”

“The truth. That we are passing through.”

“Are you sure?” I reply in a low voice. Just because these people speak a different language doesn’t mean they aren’t able to understand ours. “Maybe they don’t want us to go past. We know nothing about them”—I inhale, scanning the surrounding pillars—“other than there are thousands of them and six of us. Somehow, I don’t think they’re just going to let us pass just because we’re on a peaceful mission. I vote no.”

“This isn’t a democracy.”

“You’re not up here, Sauer. This isn’t the time for peaceful tactics. Trust me.”

“Stand down, Riven. You have your orders.”

I grit my teeth. There’s a reason these natives live here. There’s a reason that no one makes it through the bone yard. And there’s definitely a reason for my gut instincts going haywire. Those three things add up to nothing good. “Sorry, Sauer. I’m not putting the Lord King’s life, or any of ours, at risk. I don’t trust these things, and last I checked, I’m a General of Neospes, which means I outrank you.” I ignore Bass’s smirk, along with the silence on the other side of the comms. “Arven, on my mark, engage the shields.”

“You know what you’re doing, right?” Bass asks.

I’m not one hundred percent sure this is going to work, but we don’t have many other options. If they swarm the ship, our whole crew will be in danger, including Caden. “Bass, I’m going to clear a path. The minute you have access to the hatch, you get down below.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll be fine.”

“I’m not leaving you out here,” he argues.

“Bass, don’t be stupid. If one of those darts gets you, you’ll be the first course.” I almost smile when his eyes go wide. “See the red marks? Not paint. Blood. So, when I say go, you go. Are we clear?”

“Clear.

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