Rivers of Orion by Dana Kelly (a court of thorns and roses ebook free .TXT) 📕

“I wish I could, but I can only do that when I’m in my nightmare body,” said Orin. “Is a phone call okay?” The urge to cry overwhelmed him for a moment.

“Of course, it’s okay,” said Eridani.

Mike splashed water on his face as Orin and Eridani continued their conversation. “Schurke’s brought some heavyweights,” said Mike, and he glanced at Casey. “You’ve been in this business for years. You must have some ideas about how to take them down.”

“Actually, I just got word my shuttle’s out of impound,” said Casey. “I recommend we all head back to Watchtower and set course for the nightmare gate. Schurke’s got the homefield advantage here, and I’d much rather face him on our own terms.”

Mike turned around and crossed his arms. “You saw his roster. If we manage to take off before Meteor Mo smashes the shuttle flat, Frostshadow would portal as many of us out of there as she could before we got out of range, and Lafuega would shoot down whoever’s left inside! Even if we got past them somehow, Schurke’s here in person. That means his flagship is here too, and since he’s not about to let us leave, he’ll cripple Watchtower, or worse.”

Casey sighed. “Well, shit. I hadn’t considered that. Give me a minute to think about it.”

“Captain Cartwright, if I may, I would like to share my observations,” said Nimbus, and she pinched her nose with tissue paper.

“Of course,” said Casey.

“Simicron is a denshi-tengu capable of assuming heavily armored states,” said Nimbus. “Almost certainly, he will command the front line and share it with Meteor Mo. As Meteor Mo is highly mobile, he is likely to jump in and out of combat, coordinating his attacks with Lafuega and Frostshadow while they strike at range. Kodama will send his forest spirits to repair any damage his allies sustain. Even if Orin were able to shield us from their attacks, his power will fade in time. They will outlast us.”

“I ain’t too keen on your observations,” said Malmoradan.

Nimbus regarded him with a raised brow. “Patience, friend Malmoradan. I wasn’t finished.” She returned her attention to Casey. “Schurke picked these binaries because they fill key roles. His squad tactics are flawless. If we attack him and his team directly, we will lose.”

“Which means we can’t come at him head on,” said Casey.

“Correct!” said Nimbus.

“Are you saying we should separate them, so we can take them on one at a time?” asked Shona.

“Yes and no,” said Nimbus. “I believe we should focus on immobilizing and capturing them one at a time.” She indicated Shona’s lightning gun. “Furthermore, I was able to discover that Frostshadow was raised by a single mother who died when she was very young. Unfortunately, the details are attached to a criminal case, and I cannot access them without April’s help.”

“But I could get into them, since I’m a cop,” said Casey. She squinted slightly and regarded Nimbus sidelong. “I feel like you’re suggesting I should fight dirty.”

Nimbus smiled slyly. “All is fair in love and war, is it not, Captain Cartwright?”

“I suppose so,” said Casey.

“Because Schurke commands them, his binaries are either believers in his purported cause, or they have been brainwashed—and I highly doubt the latter,” said Nimbus.

“If we can find the scars that turned them into believers, we might be able to exploit that,” said Casey. “At the very least throw them off their guard.”

“Precisely,” said Nimbus. “Now we must select our arena. It will need to be a place that has ample cover and a preponderance of hiding places.”

“On the way out of the starport, I saw streets full of abandoned buildings,” said Malmoradan. “If we can find a spot that borders that ghost town, we should be able to draw them in.”

“Brilliant!” said Nimbus, and she grinned. “That is exactly what we need.”

“Now, if only we had a man on the inside,” said Casey.

“Nathaniel Knox may be such a man,” said April. “If we play our cards correctly, I believe he will turn against Lord Blösch.”

“I think you’re on to something,” said Orin. He slipped his phone into his pocket and stepped close. Taking a moment to rub his eyes, he retrieved the bloom Ellylle had given him. “Ellylle made this special for Nathaniel. She said it would allow him to speak true.”

“I’m not sure what that means exactly, but I’ve suddenly got a very good feeling about this.” Hope swelled within Casey as she thought of a plan. “Edison, Cajun, get over here!” With her team huddled around, she took a deep breath and nodded. “This is what we’re going to do…”

◆◆◆

Dressed in their BICOM gear, Orin and Casey waited beneath an overpass two blocks over from the starport. Wind whistled through the empty streets. Up ahead, a shadowy figure approached. The end of his cigarette glowed bright, and he exhaled a cloud of blue smoke.

“Constable Knox,” said Casey. “Thanks for coming.”

“You’re late for dinner,” said Nathaniel, and he leaned against a concrete pillar some distance away. “Lord Blösch was expecting you at Jump the Moon five minutes ago.”

Casey regarded him with disappointment. “Don’t lie to me. Blösch may have been expecting us five minutes ago, but dinner was never part of the plan. Admiral Schurke and his binaries are over there right now, staging an ambush.”

Nathaniel chuckled dryly. “So, we’re not here to discuss community outreach after all.” With most of his face hidden in shadow, his eyes glinted as he smirked and tapped the ash from his cigarette. “Are we?”

“No,” said Casey. “I had something else in mind.”

“Where’s the rest of your team?”

“They’re safe,” said Orin, and a halo of blue flames surrounded his hands.

“You don’t scare me, kid,” said Nathaniel. He ground his cigarette out on the pillar. Amidst embers and ash, the cigarette butt tumbled to the asphalt below.