and the flare blinded me for an instant. When I could see again through the flashes in my eyes, Gazelle was face-down on the ground, arms covering her head, and a stoneguard was closing on her.
"Look out!" I yelled. I was about to add more, but what I saw dried the words in my throat.
Flipping over, Gazelle also saw the vast stone, at least five times my height, toppling towards her as the guard's arm rose to strike. Instantly, she dived under the creature's grasp, rolling several time out of the path of the central lithoid.
The guard only had time to turn after her before the stone crashed down onto its head. Both shattered.
Gazelle was on her feet in a single movement. I could see blood coming from several wounds, but it didn't slow her down as she ran over to me. I looked around at what the remaining stoneguards were doing, but they stood motionless. As I'd hoped, they were linked in some way to the Engine.
Her ivory knife made short work of my bonds. She helped me off the slab, and it was only when I was holding onto her that I realised she was shaking. Several of her wounds had shards embedded in them, though none looked too bad.
"Your wounds. I need to remove those shards, and..."
"Later," she snapped. "Right now, we need to get out of here."
Looking around, I saw she was right. Although the stoneguards were out of actions, several of the operators were running in our direction. At least two had shardcasters out.
"Race you to the fence," she suggested.
I could have outpaced her, wounded as she was, but I stayed back and helped her through the opening before we careered into the alleys of the megavillage. We finally stopped when I was thoroughly lost from the twisting and turning.
Gazelle pressed herself against me, making a noise somewhere between gasping and laughter. "We did it."
"You did," I told her. "But I need to get those shards out and bind your wounds."
She nodded. "There's a safe place we can go, not far from here. We need somewhere to lie low, before it's safe for you to get out of the megavillage."
"And you. They might have seen you."
She snorted, though it sounded painful. "They saw a huntress. I can be other people, too." The urchin grin returned. "Maybe you'd like to meet some of them."
"I...I think I would." My body seemed even more sure of that, and I hugged her.
She winced. "When it's a bit less painful. Come on, now."
Taking my hand, she led me away through the alleys.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nyki Blatchley graduated from Keele University in English and Greek and now lives near London. He's had about forty stories in publications such as Penumbra, Lore, Wily Writers and The Thirteenth Fontana Book of Great Horror Stories. His novel At An Uncertain Hour was published by StoneGarden.net in April 2009, and he’s had novellas published by Musa Publishing and Fox & Raven, among others. For more information on Nyki and his writing, please visit http://www.nykiblatchley.co.uk/
General Hardwick
By Nicole Tanquary
The on-board therapist, Dr. Russux, was watching me out of the corner of his eye. We were ascending the floors in one of the luxury elevators, with red velvet cushions softening the walls' harsh corners. The doors were steel, polished to a mirror-gleam. In the reflection, his gaze drifted towards me … I pretended not to notice.
We stood with our hands behind our backs and our feet shoulder-width apart. My hair had been tightened into a braid that curled against my neck, and my eyes stared straight ahead, shining a thin, glassy blue in the steel's reflection. A curl came loose from my braid, and I hurriedly tucked it behind one ear, the movement unusually clumsy. I was nervous.
A medal was pinned to my chest. The elevator empty of anything else to examine, I studied it for a moment. It was gold-plaited … did Vicky like gold? I couldn't remember. Her likes and dislikes had been fluctuating so dramatically between our conversations that it felt like I hardly knew
"Look out!" I yelled. I was about to add more, but what I saw dried the words in my throat.
Flipping over, Gazelle also saw the vast stone, at least five times my height, toppling towards her as the guard's arm rose to strike. Instantly, she dived under the creature's grasp, rolling several time out of the path of the central lithoid.
The guard only had time to turn after her before the stone crashed down onto its head. Both shattered.
Gazelle was on her feet in a single movement. I could see blood coming from several wounds, but it didn't slow her down as she ran over to me. I looked around at what the remaining stoneguards were doing, but they stood motionless. As I'd hoped, they were linked in some way to the Engine.
Her ivory knife made short work of my bonds. She helped me off the slab, and it was only when I was holding onto her that I realised she was shaking. Several of her wounds had shards embedded in them, though none looked too bad.
"Your wounds. I need to remove those shards, and..."
"Later," she snapped. "Right now, we need to get out of here."
Looking around, I saw she was right. Although the stoneguards were out of actions, several of the operators were running in our direction. At least two had shardcasters out.
"Race you to the fence," she suggested.
I could have outpaced her, wounded as she was, but I stayed back and helped her through the opening before we careered into the alleys of the megavillage. We finally stopped when I was thoroughly lost from the twisting and turning.
Gazelle pressed herself against me, making a noise somewhere between gasping and laughter. "We did it."
"You did," I told her. "But I need to get those shards out and bind your wounds."
She nodded. "There's a safe place we can go, not far from here. We need somewhere to lie low, before it's safe for you to get out of the megavillage."
"And you. They might have seen you."
She snorted, though it sounded painful. "They saw a huntress. I can be other people, too." The urchin grin returned. "Maybe you'd like to meet some of them."
"I...I think I would." My body seemed even more sure of that, and I hugged her.
She winced. "When it's a bit less painful. Come on, now."
Taking my hand, she led me away through the alleys.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Nyki Blatchley graduated from Keele University in English and Greek and now lives near London. He's had about forty stories in publications such as Penumbra, Lore, Wily Writers and The Thirteenth Fontana Book of Great Horror Stories. His novel At An Uncertain Hour was published by StoneGarden.net in April 2009, and he’s had novellas published by Musa Publishing and Fox & Raven, among others. For more information on Nyki and his writing, please visit http://www.nykiblatchley.co.uk/
General Hardwick
By Nicole Tanquary
The on-board therapist, Dr. Russux, was watching me out of the corner of his eye. We were ascending the floors in one of the luxury elevators, with red velvet cushions softening the walls' harsh corners. The doors were steel, polished to a mirror-gleam. In the reflection, his gaze drifted towards me … I pretended not to notice.
We stood with our hands behind our backs and our feet shoulder-width apart. My hair had been tightened into a braid that curled against my neck, and my eyes stared straight ahead, shining a thin, glassy blue in the steel's reflection. A curl came loose from my braid, and I hurriedly tucked it behind one ear, the movement unusually clumsy. I was nervous.
A medal was pinned to my chest. The elevator empty of anything else to examine, I studied it for a moment. It was gold-plaited … did Vicky like gold? I couldn't remember. Her likes and dislikes had been fluctuating so dramatically between our conversations that it felt like I hardly knew
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