Page 41 of Triplets for the Barbarians

“I hear you loud and clear,” Blaze replies and pours the general another drink. “They won’t make it out alive, I assure you.”

“Do not assure me of anything until you have their heads on silver fucking platters!” Shaytan snarls, then pauses and takes a deep breath. “We’re fine. We’ll be fine. I suppose the launch is to proceed according to plan?”

Blaze nods once. “Yes. Everything is in place. The crew is ready and strapped in. The ship’s systems are fully functional, double-checked and tested. Estimated launch time is in about five minutes.”

“Good. I hope they’ll watch from wherever they’ve hidden, those bastards.”

I can’t help but giggle. Shaytan gives me a sour grin. I offer a shrug in return and take a long sip of my wine. There’s not much else I can do right now, anyway. I’d be raising hell if I could; I’d make their lives miserable and take away any chance of actually enjoying the fruits of their filthy labor. But we’ve got bigger fish to fry. Bigger things are coming if we’re lucky.

The minutes pass in heavy silence as Blaze and Shaytan watch the hangar with renewed anticipation. I can hear the guards shouting below. New orders. New sightings of the Kreek brothers. Word of Fire Tribe infiltrators in the city.

A smile tests the corner of my mouth as it becomes clear… we were never alone in this. The Fire Tribe has sent its best covert agents to help us. Kai and Maur are just two of them, and they were enough to wreak pure havoc.

“There it goes,” Shaytan laughs delightedly as the starship finally rises.

The entire city rumbles and trembles under its propulsion systems. The heat spreads out from under it, wafting over the buildings and through the streets, brushing through my hair and over my cheeks like a warm spring kiss.

My stomach drops as I watch the gargantuan beast made of rare metal alloys and virtually indestructible glass panes lift off the ground. It looks like a massive almond with four giant engines roaring beneath it.

Slowly, it reaches above the buildings around it.

People are cheering, though I doubt they know what they’re actually cheering for. I do know that some doubt the success of such a mission. I do know that many don’t agree with the Sky Tribe’s rule and the resources wasted on these endeavors thus far. If that starship does take off, if it gets past the atmosphere, there will be plenty of minds swayed back in the Sky Tribe’s favor.

The civilians will be tempted to accept their dominance, and so we are likely to lose precious allies we’ve fought hard to win over. The implications of such a loss weigh heavily on my heart.

“Isn’t she a beauty, Jewel?” Shaytan asks me, a huge grin slitting his red, sweaty face.

“Look at her go,” Blaze murmurs, his eyes sparkling as he watches the vessel rise and rise, steadier and steadier in its hovering state.

Its engines’ hum is briefly covered by a sharp whistling sound. A red beam flashes across the night sky. It’s short and fast. So fast, in fact, that I barely register it. The starship explodes, and I’m speechless. My jaw is on the fucking granite floor as I watch the beast explode into millions of tiny pieces.

“Holy shit,” I whisper, putting two and two quickly together.

They did get the coordinates. Opal City's long-range laser weapons worked like a charm. All it took was one shot—one carefully calibrated shot coming from the deep south of Sunna—and they did it.

It’s a rapidly unfolding disaster as the starship falls apart in a blooming flower of fire and death. Its nuclear powered cells melt and cause another chain of secondary explosions, green and blue bursts flashing through the swelling black cloud as the whole thing falls back into Pearl City.

I only hope the people down there are smart enough to run as far and fast as they can in these terrible moments. Otherwise, the meltdown and the ensuing chemical reactions will cause their agonizing deaths.

I hold my breath and watch.

A few seconds later, I’m reminded that I’m not alone up here. I look across the rooftop terrace and see Shaytan and Blaze like I’ve never seen them before. Shocked. Wordless. Motionless. Pale as pink roses in the morning sunlight, their faces covered in sweat as horror, true horror glistens in their eyes. I’m not sure they’re registering the entire scene just yet. Or, if they are registering, their brains have yet to regain control over their bodies.

They’re almost catatonic.

As tempted as I am to laugh in their faces, I keep my joy to myself. I observe as Shaytan gradually starts blinking—slowly, at first, then faster until his second glass flies across the terrace and smashes into the balustrade. A roar erupts from the bottom of his lungs, thundering throughout the whole of Pearl City as he raises his fists to the sky.

Blaze takes a few steps back, unsure how to proceed. He didn’t see this coming. He must’ve thought they had a guaranteed launch. Shaytan, on the other hand, isn’t the type to dwell in shock. Soon enough, the gears in his mind kick back into motion as he furiously looks around and points a clawed finger at me.

“You!”

“I didn’t do anything,” I promptly reply, but every muscle in my body is taut and ready for a violent response. There’s no telling what a man like Shaytan will do in these unforeseen circumstances.

“That’s a load of shit. At least have the decency to own it!” Shaytan snaps.

“I’ve been here the whole time! I never got close enough to the starship to set the explosive charges!” I insist, setting the glass aside and raising my hands in a mildly defensive gesture.

Blaze shakes his head. “That wasn’t an explosive charge.”

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