Page 58 of Barbarian Daddies

It chills me to the bone.

Kai nods slowly, darkness settling over his face. “If this is true, it means someone released that virus on Sunna. Someone wanted us to get here.”

“Or they wanted something different,” Maur says. “Perhaps this current situation wasn’t their intended result. We won’t know unless we do a thorough investigation.”

“I’ll rummage through the research lab’s archives,” I tell them. “There may be more information hidden in those secret documents. Maybe connections that simply weren’t made at the right time because everybody was busy either surviving or trying to figure out what this virus was doing.”

“We cannot release this information to the public, though,” Kai replies. “The last thing we need is the suspicion among the civilians that some pompous fucker among Sunna’s upper echelon released this virus.”

“The Sky Tribe could use it to build a narrative of their own against the Fire Tribe. Public opinion is easy to sway in times of war and disease,” Maur agrees.

“We’ll keep it to ourselves, then, until we find out who did what,” I say. “We’ll find out. I’m certain of it. Somewhere in this research lab or in another lab, for that matter, lost in some archive or some box somewhere, I know we’ll find the evidence we need to point our fingers in the right direction. A virus like this carries a signature. Whoever made it, they would’ve left a marker in its genetic print. They’d be compelled to by their own ego. This strain is a biological weapon of the highest level. It would take an insane amount of skill to build. They would’ve wanted their work of art signed and authenticated, so to speak.”

“You’d have to go deep into the viral strain to figure that out, right?” Kai asks me.

I nod slowly. “Yes. This research facility should provide me with all the tools I need. Kingo will be back on his feet in no time, and once he’s able to work again, we’ll delve deeper into this mystery. But rest assured, sooner or later, I will find the truth. But I’ll focus on finding a cure first. We need to save Sunna’s women.”

“I think it’ll be easier for us going forward,” Kai surmises as he gazes out across the agitated cityscape. Smoke and sunrise blend chaotically across our field of vision, voices rumbling from below as the residents begin to shyly celebrate their regime change. “We’ve taken one city back from the Sky Tribe, and the Emerald City hangar will be destroyed by morning. If we keep this up, we might be able to push them into a temporary ceasefire agreement, at least for long enough for you to do your lab work undisturbed.”

There is hope. That’s what matters.

After all these struggles, after three years of warring and constantly looking over my shoulder, after so much suffering and fear, it feels good to finally look toward the future and see the light rising above the horizon. Hope is a fickle thing, I’m well aware, but it’s good to have in the right dosage. Just enough to keep us above the floating line, just enough to get us out of bed in the morning and onto the battlefield. The worst is yet to come, and we will need all of our friends, resources, and allies for what’s ahead.

Our fight is far from over.

But at least we have each other. We have love in our hearts and this precious glimmer of hope in our eyes. And with that, we have more than the Sky Tribe ever will.

29

Cynthia

By dawn, Sapphire City is ours.

It didn’t take as long as I had originally feared.

The residents did help. At first, only those from the slums came forth to assist our troops when they breached the southern gates, but once word spread, once our warriors fought their way through the city, the other neighborhoods were faced with an option—stand back and let them do their work or join them. Fighting them would’ve been futile. Nobody wanted to fight, anyway. I cannot blame the civilians for making up their minds so late in game. They value their safety most, and they had no reason to rise against a faction that already occupied their city. The Sky Tribe had been governing Sapphire City for years.

But the thing about rebellion is it always starts with a spark.

That’s all it takes in the right environment for the fire to grow. To spread. To consume everything in its path. As the twin suns rise over Sunna, as the flames of the Fire Tribe’s explosive devices die down, as the last tendrils of black smoke dissolve against the reddish sky, I take a deep breath and behold a different city altogether.

This one is ours.

“Not that I minded living by the Sun River,” I say, flanked by Maur and Kai as we stand at the top of the stairs, Selina’s palace towering quietly behind us, “but I sure welcome this upgrade.”

“It’s the water pipe system, I know,” Maur chuckles softly.

“Hot showers, always!” I quip.

The street is flooded with our fighters, all of them cheering victoriously. Tallas clan, Kreek clan, Mal clan, Hadana clan, and many more joined forces for this operation—granted, only half of the Kreek clan could make it, since the other half are busy with Jewel and the chieftains. They’ve got a starship to blow up. The day has started well. I hope it will end even better once we hear news of their hopefully successful operation.

Binzen and Izzo are the first to make their way up the stairs, carrying the shoulder tresses of fallen Sky Tribe lieutenants. Behind them, the city’s residents grow silent as respects are paid to those who have perished. Regardless of their allegiance, their lives were considered precious and their deaths were honorable. Warriors have always been treated with the utmost respect upon their passing on Sunna, and that is a tradition I fully understand.

“They fought hard,” Binzen says as he and his brother leave the tresses at our feet. “But we fought harder.”

“The city is ours,” Izzo adds, giving each of us an appreciative nod. “We couldn’t have done it without you, without each of the clans in our tribe. This is what happens when we’re all united against the enemy.”

“Indeed!” Helios calls out from the crowd.

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