Page 86 of New World

“First rule of a Turbinta assassin, never turn your back on one,” Kella murmured before her blade swept out in a perfect arc.

Zoak twisted, his hands going to his throat as the fine blade sliced a path along it. The world tilted and he folded. He rolled onto his back, his mind feverishly in denial of what was happening to his body.

His vision blurred. His breath was shallow, each pull of air weaker than the last, but when a shadow fell over him, he managed to lift his gaze. The mocking woman crouched beside him, her dark eyes steady, filled not with hate, but something worse. Pity. She exhaled softly, tilting her head.

She should be the one dying. Instead, her dark eyes bore into him, unreadable, calm. He strained, wanting to know.

“How?” his voice was raspy, the word almost indistinguishable.

She leaned in, her voice soft, almost gentle. “You never understood. Evil is loud,” she murmured. “But good? Good is relentless. It’s the quiet force that keeps pushing forward, even when it’s hard. It’s the force that connects people, and there are more of us than there are of you.”

Zoak wanted to claw at the woman’s eyes. He wanted to erase the compassion in them, the serene smile on her lips. She simply shook her head at him, mocking his helpless rage.

“And because of that… you could never win.”

Her soft words washed over him, chilling him to the bone. Assassins were not supposed to die looking at compassion and smiles. He wanted to kill her, but even as the desire pulsed through him, the edges of his vision darkened. His breaths slowed, and he knew that he would be the one haunting this place, an isolated, massacred village so much like the one he had destroyed all those years ago in his first big move to be a legend… and no one would remember him.

Mei smiled when Sergi let out a low whistle, stepping over Zoak’s lifeless body with a dramatic shake of his head.

“Kella, you are one terrifying woman. I can totally see why Ash loves you.”

Kella wiped her blade off with a practiced flick, unimpressed. Ash, standing beside her, grinned.

“You know, it’s actually really hot being in love with an assassin who doesn’t play with their kills.”

Sergi and Julia both groaned at the same time.

“You might need counseling, Ash,” Mei muttered as she rolled her eyes.

“Seriously, Ash?” Julia laughed and shook her head.

Roan chuckled. “I have to agree with him. Seeing Julia in action is pretty arousing.”

Julia blushed and glared. “If you keep talking, I may have to show you a move or two that Mei taught me.”

Roan grinned. “As long as it isn’t the kick to the groin that you used on my father.”

Sergi laughed. “I’m glad I fell in love with the blood-thirsty freighter pilot instead of the killer.”

“That’s because you are the assassin in your couple,” Julia dryly retorted.

“Speaking of a certain blood-thirsty freighter pilot, do you think La’Rue is ready to pick us up?” Dorane asked, pulling Mei against his side.

Mei laughed when everyone started talking at once about what had just happened. It wasn’t until they heard La’Rue shout down from the top of the cliff that they went quiet and looked up. Mei shielded her eyes with her hand. Her lips parted when she saw the familiar man standing next to her.

“Josh!” Mei breathed, a strangled laugh slipping from her.

“Hey, guys. We’ve got a Legion Battle Cruiser heading our way! Are you done playing with the Turbinta assassin yet?” La’Rue hollered.

The battle wasn’t over yet.

Cryon II airspace

* * *

The Legion fleet surged toward Cryon II, an ominous wall of warships and firepower, its presence a herald of destruction. The bridge of the Tyrannis, Andronikos’s flagship, thrummed with tension.

Commander Ri Manta stood at his station, his expression unreadable, his hands folded behind his back as the final moments before war ticked down. The bridge was filled with Legion loyalists, their eyes locked onto the incoming battlefield. None of them suspected the silent rebellion already in motion in the bowels of the fleet’s ships, including this one.

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