“Quiet.” Lotte glanced furtively over his shoulder as if he needed to ascertain the reactions of their two companions. “Half-brother.”
“That warlord had no honor.” Trass growled. “He did us all a favor.”
Lotte’s shoulders tensed, as if he were nervous. Were the two additional guards unfamiliar to Lotte and Trass as well?
“Shut the fuck up and get on with it.” I didn’t want to think about my brother, our fight, or the blood on my hands from countless enemies whose lives I’d taken in battle. I wanted to think abouther.“I appreciate the sentiment my friends, but it’s my duty to die today.”
The true reason for my execution? No one but Helion, myself, and one other Atlan knew what really happened. No one else would ever know.
“Fucking stubborn bastard.” Lotte slapped the center of his chest then closed his hand into a fist.
Trass did the same.
They both bowed their heads, honoring me in a way I had not expected.
“Thank you.”
I closed my eyes and waited for them to take this bed—with me on it—to the execution chamber. There I would be sent into a calming sleep…and never wake up.
Whoosh.
Whoosh.
What the fuck?
I opened my eyes to see both Lotte and Trass glassy-eyed, darts sticking out from the sides of their necks.
Four more impacted their bodies somewhere I couldn’t see. But I could hear them.
Thump, thump. Thump, thump.
The warlords crumpled at almost exactly the same time. The two strangers who had accompanied them caught them on their way down and quickly removed the darts, stuffing the evidence in their pockets.
“Who the fuck are you and what are you doing here?” I demanded.
The first walked around to the other side of my bed and started loosening the restraints. The second placed a hand on my shoulder and looked me in the eye. I knew that look. Deadly serious. No arguing. Resigned. Determined.
He was on a mission. Apparently, that mission was me
“Shut the fuck up and listen. Helion sent us. I’m Razz. This is Daan.” The warlord jerked his head to the side to indicate his counterpart. “The vid feed to this room will come back up in approximately sixty seconds. We have a one-minute overlap programmed into the system that will turn off the security vids covering our exit route.”
I stared at him, confused. What the fuck was Helion doing? My death was part of his plan. We’d spent weeks setting this entire mission up. He couldn’t just fuck the whole thing up now.
The last restraint popped free and I sat up, swung my legs over the edge of the bed and then stepped onto the floor. My bare feet quickly found purchase.
Daan spoke for the first time. “You going to argue or get the fuck out of here and go to your mate?”
“They’re going to have you on vid coming in here,” I said.
“No they won’t.” Daan, who had been on the opposite side of the bed, headed for the door. He tapped the base of his throat and his image wavered like a mirage. “The vid will show two of each of them.” He pointed to where Lotte and Trass lay unconscious on the floor. “Won’t fool the eye, but will fool the vid monitors.”
“Helion give you that?” I knew that fucker kept tech in reserve. This gadget would have come in handy on more than one of the special assignments Helion had delighted in giving to me.
“Let’s go.” Razz gave the order, not bothering to respond to my question. Why bother? We all knew the answer.
Damn that fucking Prillon.
***
