Those Who Resist by N. C. Scrimgeour

Author:N. C. Scrimgeour [Scrimgeour, N. C.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Science Fiction, Adult
ISBN: 9781838459932
Amazon: B0BH1WVX87
Goodreads: 60827396
Publisher: Alcruix Press
Published: 2022-11-04T07:00:00+00:00

The stiffness in Niole’s limbs told her she’d been out for a while. Her head was thick with fog, still buzzing with the echoes of her own screams. It was distant now, like a dream already fading. But the whispers lingered, soft and hushed at the base of her skull.

Muffled voices reached her ears as she rolled over and strained her eyes. Everything was a blur. She could only make out the hazy shapes of the others around her.

Something tightened around her shoulder, and she flinched.

Kill them.

The thought was like a bolt of electricity through her brain, departing as quickly as it came.

“Just me.” Serric’s voice was strained. “Can you stand?”

Niole allowed him to help her to her feet, trying to ignore the way his hand tightened around her waist as she swayed on her trembling legs. “What happened?”

Serric jerked his head across the room. “I think we’d all like to know the answer to that.”

Alvera’s face was pale and sickly as she looked back at them, a shadow behind her eyes. The sight of her filled Niole with a weak rage she couldn’t understand. Everything felt wrong. Even Serric’s steadying hand was an unwelcome weight, and it took all of her control not to jerk away from him.

Alvera looked between them all. “If the curators didn’t know we were here already, they do now,” she said grimly. “Getting to the rest of the control centres just got a lot harder.”

“The rest of them?” Skaile stepped forward, her red skin paling in disbelief. “You’re telling me this didn’t work?”

“It’s as I suspected. There are four waystations powering that beam. Four control centres. I managed to shut this one down, but—”

“But what, exactly?” Skaile’s eyes glinted dangerously. “You set something off. Something that messed with our heads. If you think I’m going to let you drag us around these waystations, pressing buttons until you fry all our brains—”

“You’ll do what?” The venomous edge to Serric’s voice startled Niole, and she quietly reached for her flare. “It’s not like any of us can walk away from this now. We don’t have a way off this gate.”

“Because of her.” Skaile rounded on Alvera. “You’ve led us all to our deaths, and for what? A problem you and your outlander friends created in the first place.” She curled her fist, and a red glimmer rose from her armour. “I’ve had enough. I came here for the chance to kill something. If I can’t have the curators, I guess I’ll make do with you.”

The air sizzled, but the burst of energy that lit up the room was blue-green in colour, not red.

Skaile flew back, hitting the wall with a sickening thud. Her face contorted into a snarl as Serric held her with his flare. Her throat bulged as she writhed and fought to free herself, but Serric’s grip only grew tighter.

“That’s enough,” Niole said, reaching for his arm. “We can’t afford to—”

Serric spun around and sent a burst of his flare straight at her. Niole barely had time to register the air leaving her lungs as she flew back and landed hard on the floor.

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