Page 40 of Triplets for the Barbarians

Blaze squeezes my arm. “The ship is launching in a few minutes,” he says. “Shaytan wanted the takeoff to coincide with their deaths.”

“You sick son of a—” I pause and take a deep breath, finally spotting Maur out of the corner of my eye, rapidly sneaking through the simmering crowd in order to reach the execution platform. There it is, my sliver of hope. But how will any of this work? They’re launching the fucking ship!

I can hear it. I can hear its engines, their low and permanent hum rumbling in the pit of my stomach as its nuclear-powered circuits are fired up. I can see the hangar’s roof splitting wide open, the air rippling between Pearl City’s historical buildings, and the dust billowing and rising in shimmering swirls as the giant vessel prepares for takeoff.

“Soldiers, weapons ready!” Shaytan shouts, then looks at the Kreek brothers. “Yossul and Fadai Kreek, you stand accused of egregious crimes against the people of Sunna and of conspiring against the rightful rulers of this realm. How do you plead?”

“You consider yourself the rightful ruler?” Yossul scoffs loud enough for everyone to hear. “If you can’t sense the joke in that, then my answer is worthless.”

“Guilty it is, then!” Shaytan snarls. “Soldiers, take aim!”

Like automated robots, the Sky Tribe soldiers raise their weapons and point them at the Kreek brothers’ backs. I can’t see anything in the soldiers’ eyes at this point. No sign of life. No will. Nothing whatsoever, merely the emptiness of machines obeying their manipulators.

BOOM!

An explosion tears through the southeastern corner of the plaza. The people there are blown apart and thrown to the sides like limp and lifeless ragdolls. There is blood, smoke, fire, and rubble. There are screams that make my blood freeze.

BOOM!

A second explosion rips the northwestern corner, causing the building we’re standing in front of to shudder. The steps tremble and deep cracks spider upward from the cobblestone to our feet as Shaytan and Blaze pull me back. In the blink of an eye, we’re surrounded by black guards and whisked away from the impending danger.

“Dammit!” Shaytan curses under his breath, then points an angry finger at one of his men. “Make sure the launch goes as planned. No delay! And kill those Kreek fuckers! NOW!”

“Yes, milord,” the man replies and rushes away to see that Shaytan’s orders are carried out.

I can’t make much out of the swollen, chaotic crowd that scampers and scrambles across the plaza. I can’t see the execution platform anymore, either. Soon enough, I only see dark corridors as I’m taken away in cuffs.

“What’s happening?” I ask though I’m pretty sure I know the answer.

“Your friends are being stupid,” Shaytan replies. “It won’t stop us, though. We’ve come too far. There is no stopping us now!”

Part of me would love just to piss him off, but I know to keep my mouth shut in the midst of all this agitation. I try to register as much of my surroundings as possible while I’m taken back to their private residence, a throng of black guards running close behind us as more explosions can be heard throughout the city.

Chaos is unfolding outside, sheer chaos. Whatever the Hadana twins had planned, I feel like it’s working.

I only hope it worked for Yossul and Fadai, too.

They’d better be off the platform. They’d better be safe and sound. I’ve got my own way of leaving once I’m given the right signal. Until then, I plan to stay quiet and obedient, watching and waiting.

“You’re speechless,” Blaze notices, glancing my way as we go through the front doors of their sumptuous palazzo. The servants look at us with a mixture of concern and confusion, but they all bow politely and get out of our way while I’m taken upstairs to the mansion’s top level, where the roof terrace awaits. “Wait until you see the light show.”

“The light show,” I mumble, embittered by the prospect of watching the starship take off.

The launch was supposed to happen later. We were supposed to have a bit more time.

The rooftop terrace offers a sprawling view of Pearl City. On any other night, on any other occasion, I probably would’ve enjoyed the architectural intricacies of Sunnaite buildings and interconnected alleyways, greenery-filled plazas, and twinkling streetlights.

But tonight, I’m distraught and angered, boiling on the inside as I’m forced to watch something I’ve been fighting against for far too long.

Shaytan even has the audacity to have a bottle of spiced wine and fancy crystal glasses brought up to celebrate the occasion. He’s seething. I can tell. And from what I’ve heard thus far, they haven’t executed anyone yet. I’m guessing Fadai and Yossul escaped, leaving Shaytan and Blaze with only the starship’s launch to count among their greatest accomplishments.

“They haven’t caught them yet,” Blaze whispers, stealing a glance at me.

I’m sitting on the balustrade, watching the starship on the other side of the city as it hums and grumbles, and I imagine the staff on the ground running around, in and out of that massive thing, making sure everything is ready for the launch.

I wonder what happened to the Yellow Gang, if our coordinates and confirmation ever made it to Opal City, and if the universe is still on our side. There are still plenty of doubts and little hope left.

“Send more of the black guards after them,” Shaytan hisses, squeezing the wine glass so tight it breaks in his hand, leaving a deep cut. Blood drips onto the granite floor, but he ignores the discomfort as he gazes out toward the hangar. “We cannot let them get out of the city. Do you hear me, Blaze?”

---