Fury and Flame | 3

6 | 4

J A X O N

      "Hello?" The voice came quickly and suddenly over the radio. It had been some time since we'd last used it to communicate with our spy. We'd even thought Rong to be captured or dead. But here she was, out of nowhere.

      "We're listening," I told her, exchanging a glance with Kane as he and the others entered the main space at the sound.

      "I need to make this quick. They already suspect me the most of the group of new initiates, especially after what happened at the fuel factory. I didn't know they would try and root the spies out like that. They watch me all the time now."

      A sliver of fear began to worm its way into my heart. "Have you found anything new?"

     "Two things of importance. The first is only a rumor, but..." She let out a breath. "Orion is making something. There are whispers among the ranks, but no one knows what he's doing deep in the underground.

      "Second, a new weapon is being created—it has been for a while now. I'm meant to help build it. I think...it's meant for you."

      In the corner, Gigi looked up from where she'd been listening in silence. "What kind of weapon," she demanded to know.

      "I don't know yet," Rong said, sounding half-panicked in a way I'd never heard her before. "They don't tell me anything other than what I need to know now. But they're nearly ready. I know that for sure."

      "Ready..." Finn's unfocused gaze was fixed on the radio. "Ready to use it on us?"

      "Ready to mobilize. Ready to invade. They've already seized hundreds of kilometers of land around the fortress. Orion has finally created whatever he'd been waiting for, and the weapon in question is being created later today. The soldiers are preparing. It'll be any day now."

       Now that fear had its claws around my heart, threatening to squeeze. But Rong wasn't finished. "I pray that you're ready. I pray that you have the weapons you need." She paused, as if the next sentence would be difficult to say. "I pray that my death will be quick. They know everything. They will know about me, if they don't already. This will be the last time we speak."

      The air was heavy with the future—unknown to us and even more terrifying for her in the midst of our enemies. I fiddled with a screw on my arm, not knowing what to say.

      "You are the reason we were able to find the Hydrocarbon Petromensium facility. You helped us gain the means to creating weapons to even the battlefield," Finn told her, and though he looked as grave as the rest of us, his voice was strong. "You've warned us about Orion's weapons and troops. If we win this war, it'll be because of your contribution. Thank you."

      "My death will be honorable," she said, and I wasn't sure if there was a crack in her voice or just static. "Death to Imperium."

      "Death to Imperium," we all chorused. The line on the other end went dead.

▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂▂

      War was on our doorstep. And as long as the ONNT was in shambles and we were alone, we would have no chance at being a united front on the battlefield. We needed to condemn Marcella Krasowski for her traitorous crimes and reinstate Hunt. Now.

      That was why I followed Kane and Riley through Krasowski's first floor window. Once I stepped foot into the dark living room, Jake, Arlo and Finn followed suit. Gigi and the three assassins were stationed at high points around the house, prepared to shoot in the event that Krasowski was prepared for us.