Page 48 of Triplets for the Barbarians

“Nothing concrete, except there’s talk of a launch within the fortnight,” Leela says. “Your spies have yet to discover the location, however.”

Jewel thinks about it for a moment, her eyes wandering across the map. “Where could it be? Dammit, they’ve tightened their comms, and we can’t figure it out. There isn’t enough time for us to go out there and look for it ourselves.”

“The Sky Tribe is likely screening every single road north of here,” I tell her. “If we manage to get some of our people out of hiding, they could do the searching for us. They know what to look for better than anyone. It’s what we’ve been working toward all these years.”

“What about Amber, Cynthia, and Alicia?” Jewel asks the widows. “Any word from them?”

“Yes. They’re all safe but still in Sapphire City,” Sarin replies. “I understand there are heated discussions about evacuating them and the children before the enemy gets there.”

“They’d never go for it,” Jewel scoffs.

I’d say it’s reckless, but the human women have proven themselves enough times already to make the Sky Tribe’s fiercest fighters worry about them. Jewel alone has inspired tales of horror among the enemy’s campfires. Cynthia’s contributions to the taking of Sapphire City are still the subject of many conversations in Ruby City. Alicia’s more of an unsung hero these days, but it’s thanks to her that we got Opal City. And Amber… why, Amber was the force that brought the Fire Tribe closer than ever before. Her voice still echoes among us, reminding us of what we’re fighting for.

“They’ll pull through,” I say. One way or another, they will pull through. The most we can do in the meantime is keep our ears and eyes wide open. Our main goal is to find the last starship and destroy it. Alas, we can only do that from here, and we’ll need all the help we can get when Shaytan’s people do come knocking.”

Fadai can’t help but chuckle dryly. “You make it sound so mundane.”

“It’s anything but, yet these are the facts,” I say. “How many soldiers do we have in Opal City,” I ask the wives, “including your royal guards?”

Sarin, Neya, and Leela look at one another and then at the map. “About a thousand,” Sarin says. “Maybe more if some of the younger men pick up arms and join the defenses.”

“Let’s say eleven hundred,” Neya replies. We’ll summon all those aged sixteen and over. These are dire times, and we must protect the city and the laser weapons.”

We know what we have to do and how it needs to be done. What we don’t have is the necessary manpower to withstand an attack from the Sky Tribe, should they figure out what’s happening beneath the black cloud and beyond the labyrinth walls.

Shaytan has surprised us before with his attacks, particularly his most recent incursion. I fear he may find a way to surprise us further by attacking both Sapphire and Opal City at once.

“We’ve seen more drones flying in the area,” Leela says, bringing the conversation back to our biggest fear. “They never get close enough, though. They always venture farther east.”

“What about ground troops? Rogue marauders? Passing merchants? Anyone?” I ask.

The wives shake their heads at us. “Nothing. There used to be more of them before, but the labyrinth traps stopped them. Recently, however, our lenses haven’t picked up any curious folks looking around at all.”

“Well, that doesn’t feel right,” Fadai mutters and crosses his arms, then sits up and stares at the map for a while. I follow his gaze and find him focused on Opal City and its surroundings. “We should have eyes on what lies beyond Kaos Volcano, too. This entire western ridge is currently visible. If Shaytan wants to take Opal City, he’ll notice this and take advantage of it.”

Leela nods once. “We’ll send drones out every other hour just to get a bird’s eye view of the region. We still have sensors mounted down that ridge, though. Alarms would have gone off if there were any trespassers. Solomon was particularly paranoid about the western flank.”

“The military base is vulnerable without cover on that side,” Jewel says, then looks at me. Do you think we can spare a few of our city-based boys to watch that ridge and let us know if trouble comes?”

“Of course,” I say. “A dozen would do.”

We review the map and agree on the steps to take if an invasion occurs. We agree to keep the military base protected and the escape tunnels clear. The residents of Opal City can take refuge in the ancient catacombs beneath Kaos Volcano—it’s hot as balls down there, but at least they’ll be safe and out of sight.

It’ll give our soldiers enough room to focus on keeping the Sky Tribe away from the base and its laser weapons. In the absence of additional troops, this is really all we can do.

By evening, we receive new messages from Sapphire City. The widows are with us, gathered around the dinner table on the upper floor of the palace while the night settles peacefully over the city’s black, glistening towers.

The triple moonlight bounces off the opal-plated roofs, dancing across the obsidian facades of the ancient temples peppered throughout the northern district and glazing the entire city in a milky hue. From where I’m sitting, close to one of the windows, it seems so peaceful and quiet. It’s as if the rest of the universe doesn’t know or care about our woes.

Shaking the thoughts away, I try to focus on Jewel’s voice as she reads Amber’s message aloud.

“No word on a location for the last starship just yet,” she says, “but Binzen and Izzo sent their best people out there to gather Kreek survivors and as much intel as possible. Turns out the locals in Pearl City are, in fact, extraordinarily pissed about what happened, but they’re not blaming the Fire Tribe. They hold the Sky Tribe responsible.” Jewel pauses to give me a wry smile. “Told you.”

“You called it,” Fadai chuckles.

Sarin pours herself another cup of red spiced wine. “Can we trust the people of Pearl City?”

“Not at this point in time, no,” I say. “But they can at least be swayed to withdraw their support for Shaytan. That’s what Binzen and Izzo will tell our agents to do once they get there. Shaytan and Blaze are too busy trying to launch their last starship, looking for us and the long-range laser weapon, and also planning to invade Sapphire City. To say they’re overwhelmed would be an understatement. It’s the perfect time to sow the seeds of discord in Pearl City. Just enough to turn the tide in our favor on the information side of things, at least. They may not fight for us, but at least they won’t fight against us. It’s better than nothing.”

---